Family Ties
by subtleshadeofgrey
Summary: When Angel returns to Sunnydale and Buffy Spike's unlife goes from bad to worse. When they all end up in London the scoobs learn about love and family & William's relatives get to meet their favorite black sheep.
1. Chapter 1

Family Ties

By Subtleshadeofgrey

A Buffy the Vampire Slayer fanfic

No pairing as yet but options are kept open in case the story or the reader takes me in that direction - any suggestions welcome be they het or slash (but no Spike /Angel because that wouldn't work in this fic or Dawn/Spike because she's too young)

Summary: When Angel returns to the hell mouth, and Buffy, to stay, Spike's unlife goes from bad to worse. But he's declared the scoobies to be his family, even if they didn't know it, and Spike protects his family. When the whole, expanded, team travel to England to prevent a possibly apocalyptic event the Scoobs get a lesson in love and loyalty that they never expected and William's family get to meet their favourite black sheep.

A/N A long summary I know but I do tend to waffle:D This story is kind of based on a challenge but I can't remember where I saw it. It wanted Spike's family to support him and teach Buffy a lesson or something like that. Anyway that's where I got the idea from.

A/N2 I reserve the right to muck about with Canon something rotten and reinstate characters at my whim so consider this totally AU even though some events did occur - like Glory. But no Wolfram & Hart etc. Also no Gun or Connor. Please note that although Spike isn't perfect you'd be hard pressed to tell from my depiction….I refuse to apologise…..Sorry. ( I'm not really, but I am polite:D)

Warning: Angel bashing ahoy! Also mentions of past abuse, maybe non con m/m. Lots of smarm; lots of angst.

Disclaimer: J.W. is all powerful and owns the universe - well BTVS anyway. I on the other hand…don't.

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Spike stood stock still in the entrance to the hospital mortuary. He cocked his head to one side and smiled; his eyes settled on a chiller drawer at the far end of the room and he took out a wooden stake from his back pocket.

"Come out, come out, wherever you are" he sing songed as his hand closed on the drawer handle. With a sharp pull the drawer opened and the tray slid out. Yellow eyes met yellow eyes and before the newly turned vamp had time to register his surprise a grey coating of dust adorned the stainless steel. Spike gave a happy little sigh as his demon was at least partially satisfied and turned to grab a metal enclosed trolley for a body pick-up on the fifth floor. His porters I.D caught the light as he headed toward the elevators.

He sighed. '_Scourge of bloody Europe; Slayer of Slayers, reduced to honest employment. Bloody undignified is what it is'_.

As he travelled upward Spike briefly reflected on the past year. He had thought that his own little world had come to an end when Buffy had died saving humanity and those pesky puppies from Glory only to find a new purpose as big brother to Dawn. Then Buffy had come back and suddenly even that was snatched away from him. He was still bewildered at how quickly they all turned away from him at Buffy's command, but try as he might he couldn't blame them because he'd have done the same thing. He didn't blame Buffy either; he knew that they weren't good for each other. It was just that he was so damn lonely without the Scoobies to annoy him. No soft spoken, non-judgemental Tara, or bubbly and smart Willow. No Giles, who knew how to make a decent cup of tea and could happily discuss demonology or sixties music for hours. No Dawnie to remind him what being young and alive was all about and scandalize that part of him, William, the ponce, that refused to get past his Victorian values. And, on a more practical level, no-one to supply the blood he couldn't obtain by biting now that he was chipped.

And as if that weren't bad enough the poofter had returned.

Seemed the Irish bloke with the sight, Doyle, had had a vision of the Powers that Be telling them that Buffy needed his magnificent presence. Spike scowled. Bloody insult to all the effort he and the scoobies had put in since Peaches had buggered off to the big bad city. So here he was, on the outs thanks to Angel whispering his poison into the slayer's ear. She may have been a bitch to him but he knew that she would mellow once the world once again seemed more real to her than heaven. Unfortunately Angel's arrival had bollocks'd that up. 'Spike has no Soul', 'Spike is evil, he can't be trusted' And anyone who even tried to speak up for him, like sweet Glinda, bless her, was given a lecture on how Angel knew best, had known Spike for over a hundred years…blah…blah. Never told them about how well they knew each other or the lack of mutual consent involved though did 'e? And why did nobody notice that Glinda was becoming withdrawn again and that Red was worried with no-one to confide in. Or that Dawn spent more and more time in the library because it was better than being at home and Xander's re-ignited prejudices were upsetting the demon bird, Anya. Well, HE noticed but since he was persona non bloody grata he had nobody to tell.

So this was it, work or starve. And it wasn't really all bad; he had a deal with a witch in haematology to buy just out of date blood and enough money for smokes and weetabix. It was certainly better than the first couple of months after he had been turned away from the Scoobies; when he'd been so desperate for money that he had sold the only thing he had left, himself. '_Don't go there' _he admonished himself as he pushed his trolley along the fifth floor corridor.

B*T*V*S

Spike had been so caught up in his memories that he failed to notice that the scents hitting his senses were a match to the people occupying his thoughts, so it was quite a surprise when a familiar voice impinged on those thoughts as he pushed his trolley past a partially open door. The words that voice uttered were enough to stop him in his tracks.

"I am so very sorry Willow; there just isn't anything that we can do. The prognosis of the doctors stands…Sometimes we don't win the battle."

Spike edged a little closer although his vampire hearing had no trouble making out Giles' words or the distraught reply of the witch.

"She wasn't in a battle Giles! She was walking home from the library. She d…didn't stand a chance."

Spike's first instinct was to charge in and…well then his William wanted to hug the redhead and make everything better while his demon wanted to kill whatever had hurt the woman's gentle lover. Spike, however, followed neither course; his sense of smell told him that he would not be welcome among the visitors and he needed more information before he took on two particular and as yet silent occupants of the hospital room. He could sense his Grandsire and Buffy as clear as anything but why weren't they speaking up for God's sake. Whatever had happened there had to be a way to fix it….but Giles had sounded so defeated. He listened and hoped for elucidation. It soon came and when it did it brought with it a myriad of emotions, including relief that they were wrong and something could be done; dread because he knew what it was that he had to do; the dread mingling with pride at his demon's instant agreement to the task that would cause it so much pain; but the overwhelming emotion was one of anger….anger at Giles, which was tempered by the suspicion that he wasn't aware of the cure or thought it beyond their capabilities; and anger at his Grandsire who he knew for a fact was fully aware of the cure ritual and was one of the few demons in existence who could do it, but who had for whatever reason decided to keep quiet.

He forced his own demon to calm down….HIS family being protected by that total pillock! He could feel his inner William growing almost as angry but with a sense of despair that the demon rushed to dispel. Spike knew that they were both relying on him to fix this…and he would… but to confront Angel here and now was not the right way. He would be shouted down by Buffy and…. he sniffed, yeah the whelp was there too and obviously being about as much use as a chocolate teapot. He would go ballistic. Xander hadn't exactly been at Dawnie's side while Buffy was dead and he was obviously trying to keep a low profile in case she found out about his abandonment of her sister. Oh he'd been there for patrols, playing the big 'I Am' but the little details like feeding and clothing a teenage girl had not been on his list of priorities. Spike suspected that the boy somehow blamed Dawn as The Key for Buffy's demise. While Xander would want him gone out of hatred he knew that Giles would want to get rid of him to preserve the peace in the room for Tara and Willow's sakes and Red would only want to spend time with her soul mate.

And Buffy? The old Buffy would have bopped him on the nose and then listened to what he had to say…but this Buffy, this subdued and broken girl, would defer to her Knight in shining hair gel. He had always been her touchstone, soul lapses aside, and she was obviously trying to recreate a comfort zone that had existed in the past. Hoping, no doubt, that it would work better now that Red had found a way to anchor his less than stable soul; not that it seemed to have stopped him brooding…could brood for Ireland. No, charging in like the undead cavalry wouldn't work but by the time they realised that Angel was a jerk and that his own unlistened to ideas would have saved Tara it would be far too late…and that would kill Red, maybe literally, and it would destroy any chance of Buffy regaining her confidence.

No, Spike decided. He would have to deal with this himself and make it a fait accompli. Only Willow should be a part of this because only she could make the decision for an undoubtedly comatose Tara.

The bite of a T'Ka'an demon was almost universally fatal to humans.

Almost.

But not quite.

B*T*V*S

Spike went about his normal duties as a porter, coming back every couple of hours to sense how things were going. He had checked with the friendly witch downstairs on the timeframe he was dealing with and he had nearly 48 hours yet before his chance was gone. He kept well back even though he knew that his scent would be masked by the similar Aurelian signature of Angel's and that Angel himself was aware of nobody but Buffy when she was present…and he never let her go anywhere alone these days. Probably scared that one of her friends would make her see reason. He wished for a moment that Joyce was still with them. She would have known how to deal with Angelus….and maybe this time she would have used the sharp bit of the axe.

He listened to the comings and goings. Angel and Buffy were the first to leave…Cordelia and Doyle arrive…then leave. Giles goes to be replaced by Wesley and then Dawnie, so school must be over. An endless procession back and forth of her so called friends who offered their empty words of comfort to the heartbroken witch and said nary a word to the girl in the bed, treating her as though she were already dead.

And then, just after official visiting ended at 9:30pm, it was just Willow and Tara. No way would the nurses ask her to leave her dying 'friend' as they liked to call her. Spike regarded that as an insult to their love but he was hardly in a position to do anything about it. His shift had ended several hours ago and he didn't want to have to explain why he was lurking on the fifth floor like a thief in the night. He didn't want to lose the chance of working here again in the future although he knew that it was going to be a while before he felt up to such hard physical labour after tonight.

Willow sat beside the bed with it's neat crisp white sheets….Tara had always preferred natural colours, creams and pastel greens and blues…greys and browns, to stark white although sometimes she would shock with a bright neon pink or electric blue just for the sake of it. Most thought the gentle Wiccan to be predictable and solid but there was an impish side to her that only those who really knew her saw. Or should she say those who took the time and trouble to get to know her. Willow had always felt an underlying resentment that her best friends, those she considered her real family, hadn't really taken that trouble. Well Dawn had…and Spike.

Willow felt a pang of guilt pierce her grief. She had failed to stand up for the vampire when Angel had returned despite Tara's pleas on his behalf. It was Spike and Tara who had cared for Dawn after Buffy had jumped from the tower to defeat Glory. That was another reason to feel guilty the witch realised. She had spent all her free time while Buffy was gone researching a way to bring her back and then when she was back, and so emotionally damaged, there had been the guilt of having orchestrated the resurrection. She had to face the fact that she had been a bad friend to Spike and a bad partner to Tara and while there was nothing she could do to make it up to her love she could at least give Spike the opportunity to say goodbye to his favourite witch.

Willow was one of only a handful of people that knew that the 70's throwback that Spike portrayed was actually hiding a regular techno geek and that the vamp didn't travel anywhere without his cell phone. She blatantly ignored hospital policy since there were no machines connected to Tara to be interfered with and tapped in Spike's number.

Spike jumped as the phone in his pocket began to vibrate and he smiled sadly as he heard the voice on the other end. She hadn't forgotten him.

"S…Spike?"

"Hey Red…"

"Spike" Willow interrupted before she lost all courage. She hadn't been able to admit that Tara was dying to herself let alone tell anyone else and she knew that he wouldn't take it well. She had seen him cry when Joyce had passed and as for Buffy…she had never seen a grief so deep. "Spike it's Tara; she's, we're at the hospital. They say there's no hope Spike…..no hope."

"There's always hope Luv, sometimes where you least expect to find it."

"No, Angel and Gi….." Willow suddenly realised that there was something odd about the call, about the vampire's voice. It sounded too real. She turned her head towards the door.

"Spike!!"

Spike suddenly found himself with his arms full of distraught witch.

"It's alright Luv, everything's going to be ok. Spike'll fix it Pet."

Willow sobbed both because this was the first time anyone had tried to be positive and the first time anyone had offered to do something about the situation. And she sobbed because Spike couldn't know how hopeless the situation was. Giles and Angel…and Wesley she supposed, although he had been unnaturally quiet…were the experts.

"You don't understand Spike" she moved out of his cool yet supportive embrace; his scent of menthol cigarette smoke, cologne and leather was strong and comforting and held onto his arms to anchor him as she told him what had happened and that his friend was dying.

"……so when she didn't return from the library at her usual time I got worried and said we should go look for her. Giles agreed immediately and so did Doyle and, surprisingly, Cordy but Angel said that researching the new demon clan in town took priority and that since it wasn't dark yet Tara wasn't in trouble and had probably stopped off at the coffee shop or met friends." She smiled as Spike snorted in disbelief and anger. He, too, knew that Tara would always call if she was delayed; she knew how they worried. "Anyway I had this really bad feeling but with Buffy backing up Angel nobody had the courage to go against him. Then Giles 'remembered' an important book that he had in his personal collection and asked me to come and help translate the relevant passages…"

"Let me guess, no book?"

Willow chuckled at the memory of Giles letting a little of his inner Ripper out to play.

"No, no book. Just Ripper and a rather colourful description of Angel's character flaws…kinda reminded me of you." She chuckled again at the mixed look of chagrin and pride on the vampire's face. Before Buffy's return and Angels's domination of the scoobies the vamp and Giles had been getting along really well. One might almost say that Giles had been acting in a rather fatherly manner to the young (seeming) Englishman; not that she'd ever say it to either of their faces.

As she had talked they'd moved over to the Wiccan's bedside and Spike sat down and took hold of the lax and too cold hand.

"Carry on Pet" he reminded Willow who was near to tears again. She sat on the other side of the bed and took the free hand.

"We found her quite quickly. It was hard to miss the books strewn over the footpath…well unless you do what most citizens of Sunnydale do and look the other way. She had already been bitten and the T'ka'an was about to drag her away. Giles was marvellous, I wouldn't have thought he had it in him. He took on the creature single handed and kept it busy while I got Tara away. Then I came back and between my spell and Gile's knife it didn't stand a chance. But it was too late. When we told Angel and described the demon he told us what it was and what it's bite would do. Giles double checked…you know him, he never did trust Angel's word; but he found nothing except an old legend which Wesley knew about and explained that it didn't apply to humans."

Willow saw the flash of anger and the spark of amber in the normally ice blue eyes.

"Spike?"

"Sorry Pet, just hard to keep him in sometimes y'know?"

Willow smiled softly. She did, indeed, know. Both Spike and Giles knew that she had had some trouble controlling her magic but with Giles teaching her techniques that had stood him in good stead in his own youth and Tara's complete faith in her ability to resist the call to use magic to fix things that couldn't or shouldn't be fixed she had kept her integrity intact, much as she knew Spike was doing with his demon. But it wasn't always easy for either of them. And if the poison in the bite hadn't been immune to human magic then she didn't know if she would have had the courage to let nature take it's course….who was she kidding, she mused…she would have had a spell cast before anyone could blink. But that wasn't an option. And it didn't explain Spike's reaction. She knew that he would be upset at Tara's illness and how she had come to be hurt but…

"What's wrong Spike? Why is your demon acting up?"

"Because somebody is lying Luv, maybe more than one someone. There is a cure and Angelus at least is aware of it, Price, too, I'd wager."

Willow gasped. She looked down at the still body of her love and then up at the once again blue yet still angry eyes of her friend.

"But….but why Spike? Why would Angel lie about this? Oh my God! Did I screw up the anchoring spell? You called him Angelus, well you always do when you're not calling him Peaches or Poofter, but…is he…"

Spike smiled despite the situation. Nobody babbled quite as endearingly as Willow, except Buffy…before.

"No Pet, it's still the souled wonder in residence, can smell the soul on 'im" Spike shuddered theatrically and Willow realised he was trying to calm her down. He obviously had something important to say and she wasn't giving him the chance. Still it was a valid question. Spike apparently thought so too as he replied.

"Think Angel is lying to protect himself Pet. He don't know Glinda like we do. Doesn't have any reason to risk himself to save a virtual stranger. Might have done it for Buffy but any of the rest of us….Angel always did have a ruthless self centred streak."

"Why would he have to risk himself? What would he be risking? And I'd be more than willing to take any kind of risk to save her Spike. She's so much more worthy of living than I am. She's pure light and I'm…well, not."

"You're both worthy Luv, but a human can't fix this. Takes demon magic and demon blood to kill the virus that's taking her from us." He saw the look in her eyes as he mentioned blood. "No Pet, not a question of turning her. As for the consequences, nobody knows what they are. There's legends, like Windbag - Price said, but they're garbled and vague. Obviously Angel doesn't want to take the chance that the consequences will be something he won't be able to cope with."

"Then…then there's nothing we can do."

Spike watched fresh tears begin to follow the dried tracks of previous grief.

"Never say never Pet. Angelus ain't the only demon in town y'know."

Willow frowned and then the realization of the Vampire's offer dawned and she paled, raising her hand to her mouth in hope and distress.

Spike saw the need to heal her lover burn fierce in the redhead's eyes but to his eternal surprise and gratitude he also saw her concern for him, Spike; a worthless monster. For once in his unlife he felt like a man and he knew that the devil himself couldn't prevent him from doing the right thing. He felt William, at least metaphorically, stand a little taller and his demon, if it had possessed a corporeal form, would no doubt have been blushing.

"Spike! I…I can't ask you to risk yourself for us…I…"

"You're not asking Luv, I'm offering."

"But you don't even know what might happen to you."

"Everything we do in this world is a risk Willow, be we alive or undead. It isn't often that a Vampire gets a chance to do something good, and if I am willing to take risks on patrol or in a fight what kind of true monster would I be to refuse to take the same level of risk for a friend….It just wouldn't be cricket."

Willow was astounded, not so much at the vampire's willingness to take risks; he was notorious for his daredevil attitude. But to give without promise of reward was true goodness. And she had noticed, too, that his cockney accent had vanished, replaced with the genteel clipped tones similar to…..

"Well said Spike. I must say you do continue to astound me."

Spike turned an unsurprised gaze on the Watcher standing in the open doorway.

Of course, thought Willow, it was impossible to surprise a Vampire's sensitive hearing or sense of smell. For herself, though it was a shock and she dropped Tara's hand and jumped up out of her seat.

"Giles! You scared me to death!" She frowned worriedly, "Why are you here at this time of night?"

"I would have thought the question would have been what was Spike doing here….at all; especially since Angel has banned all communication with him." Willow blushed at being caught going against one of Angel's many dictates but she had heard the undeniable hint of disgust in the educated Oxbridge tone and knew that he wasn't angry with her. But how to explain Spike's presence and his humbling offer.

"Reckon you already know the answers Rupes…since you've been standing outside the door eavesdropping for the past five minutes. Question is what are YOU going to do? Are you going to stop me or help us?" Spike waited for the reply that could put a massive spanner in his plans.

"I would have thought my answer would be obvious."

TBC

A/N Hope you enjoyed. I know it seems like a cliffy but it isn't…no really. It would just have been too long if I'd carried on. Ahem.

Next chapter sees the rest of our characters enter stage right and maybe even a vague bit of plot if we're lucky!


	2. Chapter 2

**Family Ties chapter 2**

**By Subtleshadeofgrey**

"**I would have thought my answer would be obvious."**

"Would 'ave thought so Watcher but then there's a lot going on lately that goes against the obvious."

"Indeed." Rupert Giles couldn't help but agree with Spike. Even before Angel's alter ego, Angelus, had killed the lady he was beginning to love he had never liked the ensouled vampire. The thought of a 240 year old demon attracted to a 16 year old Buffy had been extremely distasteful. But they had been saddled with him at the sanction of the Powers That Be, so that was pretty much that. Didn't mean to say he had to like the cretin.

"Giles?" Willow had forgotten how the two Englishmen sometimes communicated in single words or gestures, some of which she wasn't even sure made sense to anybody but another Brit. And Spike seemed to think that the question of Giles intentions had been answered but it hadn't…had it?

Giles didn't have the foggiest idea what was going on despite his listening at the door. Surely Wesley couldn't have made such an important mistake? Yet Spike seemed so sure and Giles had begun to suspect that there was a lot more in that 130 year old brain than just peroxide fumes. If, indeed, the vampire had found a cure he would, of course, do everything in his power to help. Nobody, well nobody with an ounce of compassion, could do less. The thought that the supposedly soulless vampire standing in front of him was prepared to do a lot more than the one back home with the shiny soul sent a chill down his spine. But, one thing at a time.

"Think that was a yes Luv" supplied Spike.

"Quite" replied Giles and Willow relaxed slightly only to tense up again as he continued. "And just what have I offered to help with Spike? What do you know that Wesley doesn't, or won't admit to?"

Spike gestured for the Watcher to take his chair by the bed and he nodded his thanks as he sat opposite the re-seated Willow. He gently brushed a stray lock of hair from the seemingly sleeping yet comatose Wiccan. Spike, on the other hand, had found himself unable to remain still; his William was always a nervous pacer and his demon just wanted to get on with it. But he owed both humans an explanation.

"Okay, it's like this" he made sure he had their attention. He could see the Watcher's fingers twitch and motioned for him to take out his ever present notebook and pen. Giles rapidly complied, his puppy like eagerness almost lightening the sombre atmosphere. And, besides, he knew how the Watcher felt. His poetry may have been lousy but he had never stopped writing; turning his attention to journals instead. He almost smirked at what the academic would make of his personal record of over one hundred years of history. Maybe one day he would feel able to trust someone with his work again; the laughter and ridicule of that night he was turned still echoed in his ears, and his unbeating heart.

"Right, well" Spike resumed. He first told them about how he had come to be in the hospital corridor that morning, and about why he had gotten an honest job because no-one else would touch a chipped demon killing vampire with the proverbial barge pole employment wise. He left out the short stint as a prostitute - no need for them to know just how low he had sunk - pardon the pun, he told himself.

"Wait!" Giles' interruption made him sigh - bloody curiosity, it would take them hours if he started interrupting.

"What Rupes? I haven't even reached the good stuff yet."

Giles blushed at Spike's exasperation. He couldn't help it if he was naturally curious; besides he didn't want to dwell on the tale of how they mistreated Dawn's loyal protector. "I just wondered how come you can do a day job…I mean sunshine and all that."

Willow nodded her agreement. It had puzzled her too…and perhaps listening to the answer would distract her from the guilt at knowing that the vampire had been left to starve. She suspected that Giles had had a similar reaction, even though he had been in England when Angel had first returned and so at least had some excuse.

"Oh that was easy. I normally work nights, but when I occasionally do a day shift I always work from the mortuary, in the basement, and everyone here is under the impression that I have an allergy to sunlight so when I go to pick up a body they close the blinds. Hospitals are really good at accommodating people with ailments y'know - and it looks good on their records that they employ people with handicaps. Of course it helps that the recruitment department is headed by a Borlar demon." He noted their astonishment and ploughed on, giving Giles barely enough time to note the details in a rather untidy shorthand.

"So, as I was saying, soon as I heard the type of demon involved I knew that the 'Ritual of Blessing and Sacrifice' would purge the poison from her blood."

"That's the ritual that Wesley mentioned" confirmed Giles with a frown, "But he said that it didn't work with humans, and Tara is most definitely human; you proved that yourself when she had doubts."

Spike smiled and stopped pacing to stare down at the serene girl that he had hit on the nose to prove, by the blinding pain he experienced when hitting humans, that her so called family were wrong to label her a demon just because she had magic abilities.

"Could be that he translated wrong…" Giles snorted in disbelief and Spike shrugged, Wesley was the language expert, or so he thought. "Or it could be that Angel is pulling his strings." Giles and Spike shared a look of concern.

"So it can be done by humans?" Willow's confusion was growing but so was her hope.

"Can't be done BY humans but it can be done TO humans Pet. That's why Angelus wants to avoid it. Takes a demon to perform it; a vampire demon to be precise - and we all know how helpful they like to be to humans.

"I can see why it would be difficult to find a vampire willing to put themselves out for a human but what exactly does the ritual entail? If I remember correctly the wording in the research material simply stated that 'a creature of night must walk in the steps of the sun to purge that which haunts the blood' or something close. It says nothing about humans being involved and with the references to the sun it becomes an impossibility anyway. Wesley and Angel concluded that it refers to the legend of the Daywalkers." At Willows frown of confusion Giles clarified, "Daywalkers are a breed of vampire that can expose themselves to sunlight - they are thought to be an urban myth, or the garbled retelling of sightings of vampire's who wore the now destroyed Gem of Amara."

They both looked to Spike with expectant faces. Spike, for his part, tried not to let his disgust at the misinterpretation of the ritual show. He would have thought that Windbag-Price would have been more careful…but then perhaps he had more important things to do than save the life of one little witch; like play Renfield to Angel's Dracula…no that wasn't fair. Old Drac might owe him eleven guineas but he wasn't bad enough to be compared to the Broody One.

"Don't know about Daywalkers, never met one anyway, but the ritual makes sense if you change a couple of words. For a start the actual wording describes the poison as a tainter of blood. It's a virus similar to the one that carries the demon to a turned human through a vampire's bite. And it isn't 'the sun'…s-u-n, it's 'the Son'…S-o-n."

"Good Lord!" Giles immediately set about polishing his glasses while Willow paled at the implications.

"Yeah" confirmed Spike with a wry smile. "Of course a lot of these old legends were written by monks and what not, so I don't think that the ritual is actually gender specific. In Tara's case we're talking about The Great Goddess or Gaia or whatever you want to call her. The important part is that to perform the ritual the vampire has to ask the victim's ruling deity for a blessing and protection - to act as a sort of protector during the transfer."

"T…transfer?" Willow couldn't believe what Spike was willing to attempt…to enter into direct communion with the holiest of beings. His reply had both her and an equally stunned and amazed Giles paling anew.

"Blood Pet…it's always about the blood."

"But you said that you wouldn't turn her." Spike was surprised to see only sadness and puzzlement, not anger, in the witch's reply. He smiled at her reassuringly and then gave a nod to Giles as he figured it out.

"The Goddess! You pray to the Goddess to protect her from the turning and…." he faltered but was surprised to feel a little pride at the vampire's approving glance. He had been made to feel like a dimwit third wheel since Angel and his entourage had hit town. And what was worse was that he was beginning to believe it.

Spike finished for the astute Watcher. " I call on the Goddess and She acts as a buffer when I take a little of Tara's infected blood…it's not lethal to other demons; annoying but not lethal." Giles and Willow both looked concerned at that less than comforting inference, not quite lethal didn't mean harmless, but they let it slide for now and Spike carried on and pretended that he hadn't noticed their concern or that his demon was getting one of those warm fuzzy feelings that it so hated. "Anyway then the infected blood is killed by my demon blood - the two are incompatible….."

"Your blood creates antibodies!" Giles suddenly realised that underneath all the ritualistic language a simple yet profound scientific process was taking place. "An antidote."

"Yeah, I suppose it is" the vampire confirmed. "Anyway I pass some of my blood back to Glinda, and that's where we need the protection of Gaia, Tara being too close to death for my liking; then the blood, like you say, triggers the destruction of the virus and she should be back on her feet in a few days none the worse for wear…..course there might be the odd side effect, the ritual isn't too clear on that but nothing alarming or dangerous. It's a ritual of healing after all.

Willow nodded. Unknown side effects were a concern but when being dead was the alternative…she could deal and she would be there for Tara, and Spike, whatever the result. She felt a momentary surprise at the sudden rush of affection for the vampire. It was the antithesis of what she felt for the other vampire in their lives. In fact if Tara was to turn out like Spike she could even live with a vampiric lover. But she trusted Spike not to break his word.

"And what about you Spike?" asked Giles. The ritual seemed straightforward enough. If only Angel had had the guts to go through with it both Willow and Tara would have been spared days of suffering. But it sat uneasily with him that Spike would be putting himself in danger. He really wanted to give himself a good slap for developing protective feelings for one quarter of the Scourge of Europe but what was done was done and he didn't want to see the annoying twit damage himself. Unfortunately there didn't seem to be much choice.

"'m a demon Rupes. There isn't much that can damage me on a permanent basis. 'Sides we don't have a choice." The look he gave the Watcher and the witch was a statement…that the time for talk was over.

"What do you need to complete the ritual?" Giles could hardly argue and looking at the pale figure in the bed and the red rimmed eyes of the girl holding the almost lifeless hand he found that he didn't want to.

"Already set everything up at the old Crawford Mansion", he noticed the Watcher wince. It was there that Angelus had tortured him and Drusilla had put him under her thrall. "Sorry Giles but it was the only place isolated enough…No good memories for me either."

Giles nodded his understanding. Angelus and Drusilla had kept the then crippled vampire there, starved and humiliated in his wheelchair.

"I'll go get a trolley and we'll get Glinda out of here. Rupes, you keep the staff at bay yeah?"

B*T*V*S

Dawn sat in her usual place at the library. She felt it was some kind of testament to her lack of a life that she could lay claim to having a usual place. But it was at least demon and Angel free, and that was what counted….well she had her suspicions about Mrs Frost, the head librarian, but Spike had assured her that the only thing demonic about the hatchet faced woman who looked suspiciously like the wicked witch from the Wizard of Oz was her ferocious glare if you accidentally put a book back out of place.

She sighed and doodled another pentagram on her history notebook; homework sucked without Spike to bring it to life - who would have thought that demons had put out a contract on Hitler because he gave evil a bad name; it certainly put the bunker scene in a whole new light.

She had made an effort with Angel, really she had…well she had tried for Buffy's sake because as much as her big sister got on her nerves she was just so sad all the time that if anything would bring back the happy and take away the cold empty anger that seemed to hover like a cloud, well then she would do it. But please…Angel! Talk about control freak! Every time he gave her an order she was reminded how Spike managed to make you think that what he wanted you to do was your own suggestion in the first place, and by the time you figured out you'd been duped you'd realised that he was right. And silly though it was, because Captain Forehead had a soul and was a white hat, he scared her…just a little. Spike never scared her.

God! She missed him. And she couldn't even sneak behind her sister's back because HE was there, sniffing for unwanted or suspicious scents like a pig hunting truffles; she'd tried washing with Buffy's shower gel to throw him off and even burned incense, but the vampire had a nose like a bloodhound. And he wasn't even subtle about it. Spike smelled things too, all the time. He'd explained that it was a part of what vampire's did; but he was subtle, a slight flaring of the nostrils and a concentrating tilt of the head, whereas Angel sounded like he had sinus problems …probably did, what with the weight of that brow bearing down on his nose. She snorted at the thought and smiled prettily at the scowl she received from Mrs Frost. Even when he wasn't here Spike managed to cheer her up. And with Tara so ill she certainly needed cheering. Nobody was telling her anything but the worried glances and hushed conversations didn't bode well. She just hoped that somebody had been able to get word to Spike. He deserved to know. Before it was too late. She put her books away; how could she study when the woman who had become like family to her might be dying. Tara needed her and Spike and so did Willow, but she was deemed too young to go to the hospital for any length of time and when she was there she suspected that the others were putting on a false front, with overly bright optimistic smiles; but she let it go because any sort of visit was better than none at all, which was what Angel had suggested. At least this way she got to show Willow that she cared; Spike wasn't even being given that option, and even if he had been allowed to visit his best friends nobody had seen him around for weeks. She knew that he hadn't left town because he would find a way to let her know, and his friend Clem, the friendly demon, had let slip that he'd played poker with him a few times. She sent a mental curse to the Powers that Be for landing them with Angel and tearing apart their family.

Two figures clad in sparkling white togas peered into the scrying bowl and watched the world, well a very small part of the world…located in California, play out it's drama below them. They felt the anger of The Key and looked sheepishly at each other. Sometimes they wondered if choosing the ensouled vampire as a champion had been more trouble than it was worth. Their attention was suddenly redirected and eyebrows were raised in surprise. It seemed that events were taking a rather unusual course.

B*T*V*S

Everything, for once, went without a hitch and within the hour Glinda's hospital bed had been swapped for an old fashioned four poster, although she was oblivious. The bed posts were wreathed in ivy and laurel and the smell of jasmine and roses filled the air. It was the antithesis of the sterile antiseptic room they had just left. As Willow tucked the handmade patchwork quilt around her lover she smiled sadly; even if this didn't work she knew that the Wiccan would rather die here than there.

Giles and Willow set up the candles and drew the summoning circle at the foot of the bed while Spike went off to prepare himself. They could tell that the vampire was nervous which made them nervous in turn. Giles could not recall any instance of a demon born of hell willingly entering into communion with a deity of purest goodness. He hadn't even conceived of the possibility. Everyone knew the result of holy water or a crucifix on a vampire; to endure the presence of a Goddess would be a demon's idea of hell…and Spike had the willing cooperation of his. He shook his head in wonderment for the hundredth time that night, or so it seemed.

"Spike! Oh my gosh!"

Giles turned to see what had caused Willow's shocked exclamation and his jaw dropped in surprise although the vampire's glare prevented the humorous gleam in the Watcher's eyes from spreading to his mouth.

Spike shuffled nervously. "Was William's idea…the pillock. Wanted to look smart for the visit."

It had taken Giles some time to get used to the way Spike had come to terms with his demon and human sides but over that terrible summer he had begun to rethink Council teachings. They taught that the human was obliterated in the turning but he had seen and heard William in so many different ways that he found it impossible to believe in such simplistic ideology as the council of wankers, as Spike had dubbed them, touted as truth.

"I must say Spike, that I have never seen you look so smart."

"Wow!" was Willow's contribution and Spike was grateful that vampires didn't blush.

Spike pulled at the lacy cuffs that draped gracefully over his long and elegant fingers. In fact the whole effect was elegance personified…elegance circa 1880. The white, lace trimmed, shirt was topped with a black brocade waistcoat decorated with an intricate design in silver thread; the long frock coat complemented the black trousers and polished black boots with a low but noticeable heel, also edged in silver. Silver rings set with amethyst and lapis lazuli stones adorned his fingers and a single diamond stud earring glittered in the candlelight. The still peroxide hair should have looked out of place but it just set off the whole ensemble…and were those glorious curls natural!? Spike had to admit that he'd missed dressing up; maybe the Count had something after all. His 'uniform' of black jeans, tee and overshirt were practical and serviceable and made a statement that he wasn't to be messed with but as a creature of the Victorian era he had a soft spot for good design…he'd stolen enough posh frocks for Dru in his time. Even ate a designer for Armani once.

His demon drew him out of his reverie with an internal growl and a mental swipe at William who was regretting his inability to admire himself in a mirror. With one final tug on the black Whitby jet and silver cufflinks he got down to business.

"Time to get this show on the road folks."

B*T*V*S

Buffy sighed as Angel kept up the lecture on maintaining team discipline that he had begun when they had left the hospital. He was right of course, he was always right. Wesley said that he was right, and if the Powers that Be didn't think that he was right they would surely have said something by now. Maybe a well placed lightening bolt….or was that Greek Gods? Maybe they would send the odd little man with the silly hat…Whittler, or whatever. Oops, Angel was staring at her…should really keep his eyes on the road…had she missed something? She took a chance and nodded….must have been ok she concluded as he smiled and turned his head away again.

She knew that he was right…. She had wanted to stay with Willow at the hospital but he had said that Willow probably didn't want to be disturbed, probably wanted to spend these last hours alone with Tara. At that thought Buffy waited for tears to form. It was sad…when she was sad she cried…nothing. Never anything anymore. No joy, no grief…just anger. Anger at Willow for bringing her back and anger at herself for being angry at Willow, and anger at the world for being less than heaven.

Thank God Angel was here. He had taken over the decision making, leaving her to do what she did best…kill demons. She almost chuckled at the thought that she finally knew how the Buffybot felt. Yet a little part of her wondered why, if Angel's return was such a good thing, did everything seem to be getting worse, or was it just her pessimistic imagination? More than anything else…more than a normal life or a lover or even heaven she wanted her mother back. That was when it had all began to fall apart. When fate had snatched her from them. Mom would know what to do, what to say to make everything right. But unlike her own return Mom was never going to come back and she just hoped that while she was caught up in this…what had Giles called it? Ennui, that was it; well until it went away or she left it behind she just hoped that Angel was making the right decisions on her behalf. But she had a sinking feeling that things were getting worse, not better at all.

B*T*V*S

Anya sat on their couch, in their apartment and watched their relationship slowly die. She had tried, God knew that she had tried to break through Xander's obsession. But her boyfriend's hatred of everything non human had grown by leaps and bounds since Buffy's return. It was as though despite being ecstatic at the return of his crush, (and after over a thousand years on this planet nobody could accuse the ex vengeance demon of being dense…she knew how the man felt, even if he wouldn't admit it to himself, or her. In fact his words when she confronted him with the truth had been quite harsh) he had blamed the whole of the supernatural world for the fact that she didn't come back perky. How could you die and go to heaven, and hadn't that admission caused a furore, and come back like you'd been on vacation to Florida. Florida was where they had chosen to go for their honeymoon…she didn't think it was likely now; not as she watched him pace their living room muttering about evil demons, and vampires, and Spike. Why he blamed one of the few who had done nothing but good throughout this whole affair she didn't know, or perhaps that was it. That the supposedly evil vampire had been the one to hold it all together while Xander had avoided poor Dawnie and Willow, his supposed childhood friend. Anya frowned as she contemplated her husband to be. She had thought him the man of her dreams but he had turned out to be a sullen and petulant boy. Perhaps regular orgasms and that warm fuzzy feeling at being cared for by someone could be found elsewhere…she certainly hadn't been feeling it much with Xander of late. And life was far too short to waste, especially when you were no longer immortal.

"Xander, we need to talk."

B*T*V*S

Cordelia Chase sat in her room and flicked aimlessly through a magazine. She hadn't signed up for this; babysitting a rebellious fifteen year old and pandering to an increasingly difficult vampire. She had begun to entertain thoughts that maybe she and Angel…but then Buffy had come back, again! Honestly, what was it with that girl and resurrection? Tacky much! She had begun to carve out a life for herself in L.A. but then suddenly Doyle gets a headache and it's pack your Gucci and let's go. She wondered if it was time to contact her agent, see if she could get her movie career back on track.

Doyle studied his hand; it was a good one and Spike's friend Clem was a lousy poker player but if he won then he was going to have to figure out what to do with twelve kittens. Of course if he lost then he had a fair idea what would happen to said furballs…he was half demon dammit, it shouldn't matter to him if the mewling monsters were destined to be a late night snack. He didn't even know why he had come, it wasn't as though he had ever met the blond vampire; but come on, who could resist checking out something as bizarre as kitten poker, especially when it had been the only thing to bring a smile to the Slayer and her sister's faces. He sighed and called the hand; just as he thought…now how many people could he find to offload his winnings onto. He really, really didn't know why he'd come. And then the vision hit, and he knew. As the pain cleared slightly he saw the floppy eared demon staring at him with concern.

"Clem, we have to talk."

B*T*V*S

Angel was happy; well as happy as he ever could be. Just because he knew that his soul was now anchored didn't mean that he could instantly turn his way of thinking around.

And he had been thinking…a lot. He had thought of all he could do to improve the efficient running of the Slayer's calling now that he, and not that inept excuse for a Watcher, was in charge. He also thought that Buffy would feel a lot better if she just gave into her obviously still strong feelings for him. They could make love now, except that she had given him no indication that she was interested in sex. He supposed that it was the lingering effects of her return. She would come around eventually. It wasn't as if he wasn't used to being patient. And some things had gone okay. Wesley was doing a good job of replacing the annoying older Watcher…it still gave him an odd sense of guilt every time he talked with the man that Angelus had tortured and whose lover he had killed. He didn't see why he should feel guilty, it was Angelus that had performed the evil deed after all, not him. And at least his worthless, good for nothing, pathetic Grandchilde was out of the picture. He undermined his authority at every turn; kept calling him Angelus, reminding everyone of what he would rather they forget and reminding him of what he, himself, was. It brought back the memories of William's first years with them. The overwhelming sense of pleasure as he broke the pathetically innocent boy, who had somehow managed to maintain part of his human self at his turning…Drusilla never could be trusted with her toys. He remembered how it had felt to cut and bite; to violate and claw at the tender fledgling's body. At how tight….

Angel drew his thoughts back into line rapidly. That was somewhere he daren't go. It was too much like the thoughts that Angelus would have, and they were not the same person, no matter what Spike claimed.

B*T*V*S

Giles and Willow stayed quiet as Spike mentally prepared himself for the ritual. There was nothing more they could do for Tara; it was all in Spike's hands now. They just hoped that the Goddess would look kindly on the vampire and see how much he cared for her 'child'.

Spike knew that this would work…should work, and that it would involve him using magic - he hated magic, it always had consequences; but this time the alternative consequences, of inaction, were far worse than anything that could happen to him. Even if he dusted he had had over one and a quarter centuries of 'life' while she hadn't even made the quarter mark. So magic it was then. That would be the easy part; because what neither the witch nor the Watcher knew was that, like Tara, and thanks to that part of him that was William, he was a natural…a natural born Wiccan. And how that would affect the ritual, God…or rather Goddess…only knew.

TBC

Thanks for the kind comments (Jasmine 69 I tried to reply but my email came back) Hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Suggestions for pairings have been made, from Anya to a X3 Willow, Spike, Tara, and Spuffy. My muse is dithering. We'll have to see how it goes!


	3. Chapter 3

Family ties chapter 3

Okay people it's now officially a Spuffy fic - the love for the spuffiness is stronger than any other - and who am I to argue. However it will not be the focus of the fic. This is a fic about family not just romance and there are many kinds of love in a family. That's what I want out of this, for lonely and lost people to find their spiritual home. It's still not Angel friendly though. lol. Please note that this chapter deals mostly with Tara's cure and some sibling type bonding.

Now where were we? Ah yes……

Spike knew that this would work and that it would involve magic - he hated magic. But he also knew that like Tara he was a natural and as much as he hated to admit it his research over the years had led him to the inescapable conclusion that it was his Wiccan aspect that had made him the not quite so demonic demon that he was today.

A human, when turned, left behind any latent qualities or strong traits that were associated with their human selves. Those traits were, in turn, harnessed by the demon if it so chose. Liam, when he was human, was a cruel and cunning wastrel; the demon multiplied those qualities into sadism and so Angelus was born whereas it was Darla's whoring and amoral nature that were twisted to create the animalistic seductress that had attracted Liam. Dru - poor ducks, was pure in her goodness and total in her Angelus induced insanity by the time he turned her; when coupled with her psychic abilities a stunningly pure girl with the 'sight' became a stunningly cruel vampire with a 'gift' that rewarded her with an eternity of 'seeing' without understanding. And Spike knew that somehow it was his natural connection to the Earth Goddess and it's accompanying abilities which had lain dormant during his human years that had somehow prevented the total destruction of William when the demon infected him at his turning.

He remembered how William had begun by cowering away in the back of his mind; the gentle poet and scholar refusing to acknowledge what his body was doing with the demon in control, while the demon refused to acknowledge that it had failed to totally eradicate the previous occupant of it's new home, yet was ready and willing to blame the supposedly non existent Victorian for those momentary lapses in it's ruthlessness. Of course the demon didn't hesitate to grab those of William's qualities that it deemed useful but why it hadn't twisted the high level of intelligence or the vivid imagination like other demons did with their victim's abilities was a question even the demon itself couldn't answer. Spike, the self acknowledged offspring of the two and piggy in the middle, firmly suspected the wiccan link.

Of course it hadn't done him much good in the long run since, despite him being smarter than either Angelus or Darla the sadistic attentions and greater physical strength of his Grand and Great Grandsire and their dominant position in the vampiric hierarchy had kept him from rebelling. That, and the need that both the demon and William seemed to share, the need to be needed; the desire to be loved and wanted; to not be abandoned. Angelus's own twisted need to dominate and possess William, defined by the frequent torture and the rape, had been too much for the young Victorian, who had given over his influence on their mutual personification, Spike, enabling the demon to control and mould him into the vicious killing machine that he needed to be in order to thrive in their world. Even then, though, the demon couldn't totally repress that other side of them, the caring, loving aspect coming through in his care and love for Drusilla. Later when the two had reconciled the feelings would turn to others before leaving him bereft once again.

Love's bitch indeed.

It had been the chip that had changed everything once again. Unable to function in the human world yet physically incapable of surviving in the demonic one Spike's demon had called on the long dormant William to help them. A truce was formed. William finally was able to peek out from his hiding place and once again the man in the middle had begun to change without the aid or encumbrance of a soul. Spike sometimes wondered if it was his ability to separate, redefine and then recombine his two sides that made his continued existence possible. He would have been dust many times over if it were not for his ability to adapt. He knew that he didn't have a 'split personality' per se, but he had the guts at least to acknowledge that the two halves of him were in many ways one and the same and shared responsibility for his actions. William may not have instigated violence but it was his insight and intellect that kept them 'alive'. Not like Peaches, who blamed everything from attempting to end the world through to killing Red's fish on Angelus. If Angel hadn't have had some influence the demon wouldn't even have known that the bird had any flipping fish.

Spike forced himself to calm down. It was no wonder that he was agitated; this was probably only the second or third time that this ritual had ever been attempted and there was no point in letting the others know that neither of the other tries had been successful. But it was for family, so it was worth the risk. Family was everything. The demon had even helped to protect his human family after he was turned. His mum had been the tragic exception and even the demon had been shocked at how that had turned out. It reinforced his Wicca theory - his mum was a staunch Methodist.

B*T*V*S

"Gone! How on earth can she be gone?…..Well what about Willow?….Figures. Have you contacted Giles yet?….Huh, that's odd. I can't imagine him condoning Willow taking Tara from the hospital….Well of course she should still be there, what if our research comes up with a last minute cure…..It's possible Angel, it might not be likely but it is possible…Alright, I'll talk to you later. By the way how is Buffy faring?…Well it's early days yet I suppose…A spell? I'm not sure that would be a good idea Angel" Wesley held the phone away from his ear as Angel upped his volume as he listed all the reasons why he thought that spelling Buffy back to normal would be a good idea. After the diatribe he gave the one reason needed to put the vampire off his proposed course of action. "And what if it doesn't work and you lose her all together, or if it works and you lose her because she decides that she doesn't need you anymore?….That's what I thought. Now I will do some research into where Willow and Giles may have taken Tara, and why. Meet me at the Magic Box in about two hours." Wesley put the receiver down and pinched the bridge of his nose to release the tension that dealing with the Champion of the Powers That Be always brought. All his research had indicated that Angel was going to be very important in the future. There had been some mentions in the books of prophecy about a Trinity saving the world and since Angel was a Champion and part of the Holy Trinity was a holy spirit which could be seen as an angelic figure it didn't seem like a good idea to antagonize the difficult vampire.

B*T*V*S

Xander Harris was shocked. He stared into his scotch and saw nothing but amber…the colour of a vampire's eyes! He threw the glass against the wall of his very empty feeling apartment. It gave him a small satisfaction. He just wished that it was the peroxide vermin that he had thrown into the wall. It had all been his fault. Giving Anya funny ideas. What the hell had given her the right to call him immature, and prejudiced. He'd taken her on hadn't he; after all how many people would offer to marry an ex demon. He'd thought that at last she had been learning what it was like to be human and that it was preferable to being a monster. Then Saint Spike comes along and tries to fool her that you can be a monster AND be one of the good guys. All he'd done was wait on a semi human glowy Key for a few months. She may seem to be Buffy's sister but why couldn't anyone see that not only wasn't she human but that it had been her fault that Buffy had died…again? Even Giles, practically the only other fully human person he knew besides Buffy, well if you ignored her Slayer bit and his worshipping of demons in his youth; even he had started falling for dead boy junior's lies. And now Spike wasn't even here and he'd still broken up his first real relationship. He had to find a way to get her to come back; he would apologize for slapping her…it had just been the shock of her announcement, she had to see that. But once he had gotten rid of the vampire vermin she would see how much better being human was. And her threat to give D'Hoffryn a chant was only that…she wouldn't really do it…would she?

B*T*V*S

Doyle explained his 'gift' to the friendly demon as he pulled a stray tabby kitten from under the table and tried to put it back in the basket. He would ask the demon to keep them for him but the guy looked a little too peckish for his liking.

"So what did you see? I'm presuming that it's not good, 'cause needing help doesn't indicate good."

Doyle noted that Clem babbled rather like Willow but the floppy eared demon had been right.

"Something's going down in England Clem, and we're going to need to leave town for a while. Do you know anyone who could be asked, or paid to hold down the fort till we get back. Would be kind of nice to have a Sunnydale to come back to if you get my meaning?"

"Well I'm not the fighting type but I think I can round up some bored demons. Been a bit quiet round here lately and believe it or not a lot of 'the brothers' want to see it stay that way." Clem thought for a few moments as Doyle poked little paws, seeking freedom, back into the safety of the wicker carrier.

"You know that Spike comes from England, he might be able to help you over there."

Doyle smiled a bright, knowing smile, "We're going to be counting on it."

B*T*V*S

Giles and Willow stood back and watched Spike pace. If it was this traumatic for the young vampire to contemplate what sort of anguish was actually performing the ritual going to cause.

"Giles…?"

Giles understood the question behind the hesitant and tailed off comment. "I know of no other way Willow. If I did…." Unable to finish he just shrugged helplessly. Willow nodded her acknowledgment.

They both jumped as Spike suddenly stopped his pacing and straightened up. His face when he turned toward them was one of serenity and resolve. Giles noted with astonishment that while his face portrayed it's human aspect his eyes glowed purest amber. According to the Council a partial change was not possible. The animalistic nature of the vampire being too simplistic for such control. He mentally chalked another point up to their vampire…and a middle finger to Quentin Travers.

Willow let out a sigh of relief at the look of determination on Spike's face. She hadn't wanted him to have to do this and she didn't doubt that he would keep his word but it was still good to see that Tara would at least stand a chance now. If anyone could come through for her it was Spike. She only wished that Buffy could be here. To see how brave and loyal Spike truly was and to see how unfavourably Angel fared in comparison. If this failed and she lost Tara and Spike she would never forgive the so-called ensouled vampire; and if it worked and brought Tara back to her she would still never forgive Angel; this time for drawing out her suffering when it was in his power to stop it and possibly causing his Grandchild suffering due to his cowardice.

Spike looked down at the summoning circle and deliberately erased it with his foot. "Don't think it'd be polite to try and trap a Goddess do you?"

Giles and Willow hadn't considered the implied insult and nodded their understanding. Without further ado Spike lit the candles that indicated the four points of North South East and West, muttering an invocation as he did so. He then stood at the end of the bed and brought his demon forth.

Giles itched to bring out his notebook as the demon chanted in a tongue that he didn't recognize. It was obviously a demonic language but that was Wesley's field not his. He felt the air begin to charge with electricity and glancing at Willow he could see that she was feeling the effect too.

As suddenly as it had appeared the demon vanished and what could only be William, from the precise and elegant tones, took up the chant, this time in a language that both of them recognized. Gaelic. Giles gave a start of surprise; he had assumed that, like most magic, the language used would be Latin, but it made sense that a Celtic ritual would use a Celtic tongue. They listened respectfully to the call for aid.

'Blessed Gaia, Blessed Mother, Blessed be.

I am unworthy

I am damned

I am thrice cursed, but I beseech ye hear my petition.

My demon has called on you, I call on you, we call on you

Give your aid to your child, Tara.

Assist your unworthy son to heal your precious daughter.

Take of my pain in sacrifice to your perfection.

As you will it, so mote it be'

The air was now filled with a myriad of sounds smells and lights. Gentle breezes carried the cry of a newborn baby and the song of a mother's joy. Birdsong of the dawn mingled with the sounds of the night. Bright rainbows formed and faded while a light as bright as the sun bathed them all in it's warmth.

Giles and Willow gasped at the overwhelming assault on their senses. It was beautiful in it's perfection and perfect in it's beauty.

Spike fell to his knees and began to scream.

Giles tried to cry out to the stricken vampire and both he and Willow attempted to move to his aid but they were frozen in place. They could only watch as Spike morphed in and out of his demon visage, his cries anguished and his face streaked with tears yet still as determined as when he had begun. It was as though he were burning in the light of the sun yet there were no flames, just unrelenting pain. Even dust would be preferable was a fleeting thought before his determination and his love for Tara kicked in again. He stopped fighting the pain and gave into it, knowing that for once his suffering was for a purpose rather than someone else's pleasure. He could feel the sorrow of the Goddess as she accepted his sacrifice; She did not want him to suffer either but they both knew that it had to be; it was all that his demon could give and she accepted it which was all that mattered.

As the screams quietened into whimpers which tore even deeper at the witch and the watcher's hearts the bright pseudo sun faded and began to coalesce into a female figure. Giles had been in the presence of practically every type of creature in his time from demon to hellgod but nothing he had ever experienced had prepared him for the sheer power and ….holiness was the only word he could think of, of the embodiment of The Goddess herself. If he was feeling overwhelmed, humbled and unworthy in her company then he could only imagine what Spike must be going through. He would look to see how the vampire was coping, the whimpers having faded into a kitten-like mewling, but he couldn't tear his eyes away from the old yet young, motherly yet maidenly woman who stood before him. He did the only thing that he could do. He dropped to his knees and bowed his head in deference.

Willow felt like she had come home; she felt the motherly love that her own had been unable to provide; she felt warm and comforted …..she also felt shame and guilt at her indiscriminate use of her magical gifts and unworthy of being in the presence of her Goddess. She too knelt, wanting to clasp her hands to her ears to block out the sounds of Spike's, now exhausted, cries and, conversely, offer herself up for his suffering because he didn't deserve this. She did neither, trusting that Gaia would not let a creature suffer unnecessarily and because this was Tara's only chance and she admitted that she was too selfish to put the vampire before her love. Her guilt increased tenfold but the Goddess smiled serenely at her and she knew only peace.

'He does not suffer in vain My Child'

The voice in her head sounded like crystal chimes on a warm summer breeze. She sighed her thanks and watched along with Giles as The Goddess moved across to the bed. They watched as she placed her pale hand on Tara's brow and recited her blessing . Tara remained asleep but her colour had improved and she seemed to breathe a little easier. Both witnesses held their breath as Gaia approached a kneeling Spike.

Spike, unable to hold himself up any more, had slumped forward until he was almost curled into a ball. He could feel her power coming closer. It was almost more than he could withstand. He pictured gentle Tara in his mind and it was as though she knelt beside him. He could feel her blessed warmth.

Then just as suddenly she was gone and he knew that the raw power of the Goddess was kneeling beside him. He wanted to thank her for that moment with Tara but his throat was too hoarse from screaming and his brain couldn't string together the words.

"Hush Child. Your sacrifice is accepted…you are worthy….your demon is worthy….William, you are worthy."

Spike looked up in astonishment. He had expected the Goddess to acknowledge William and even to address his demon but that he, the bastard child of the two, would also be found worthy was….was…

Bloody amazing!

Gaia smiled as she stood, her hand capturing the vampire's cool one as she pulled him up with her. She had never had a vampire child before. Some had called on her in the past but their motives had not been pure and she had found them wanting. But this most unusual of men was as a brother to her daughters and as a son to her. And his demon had allowed her William, her lost child, to return. He would be rewarded.

The Goddess released her hold on the witnesses and they moved forward slowly, staring in awe at the sight of Gaia, herself, standing before them. While it was not unheard of for The Great Goddess to answer petitions She would normally send a familiar spirit to speak her words, a loved one lost or a minor deity. But to come herself, in the form of The Mother, beautiful and somehow the embodiment of everything one would associate with motherhood was the rarest of compliments.

Gaia looked down on her supplicants with love and more than a little amusement. They had called on her for a purpose, a noble purpose, yet they stood before her like startled rabbits. Humans were, indeed, her favourite creations!

"Ask." she reminded them gently.

With a mental shake Giles recovered first and tapped Spike on the shoulder. He winced at the flinch; the vampire was obviously still in a lot of pain.

"W…..What?! Oh, yeah, right….sorry." Spike nodded his thanks to the Watcher for bringing him back to the moment and addressed the figure before him, fresh tears forming at the look of gentle encouragement She bestowed on him.

"Great Goddess, we … that is I….come before you to beg your….um…intercession? Nah, that's not it…. See, what it is…" Spike glared at the watcher as he snorted inelegantly; let him try to think when he's being smiled at like that! He turned to the serene smile once again and noted with equal parts dismay and joy the amusement in the green…or was that grey? eyes. He took a deep breath and with a muttered 'Oh bugger' he tried again.

"Gaia, Tara is too precious to lose. The world needs her…we need her and I can save her but she needs your protection from turning when I do….please let us save her."

The part of the Goddess that was The Maiden wanted to giggle childishly at the handsome young man getting his words in a twist; the part of Her that was The Wise Crone wanted to give him an indulgent slap to the head and mutter about the youth of today while the part of Her that stood before him wanted to, for some inexplicable reason, make him a mug of hot chocolate with marshmallows and wipe away his tears. Instead she gave him and his companions the one thing they really wanted.

"I will grant my protection. Proceed Child."

Willow couldn't believe it. They now had real hope. She clasped Giles hand and he gripped hers tightly in return. This was beyond his wildest hopes…and he would never forget the sacrifice the vampire had made; he couldn't have not known how the demon's reaction to the holy presence would affect him or even if he would survive it. At one time he would have shrugged off his feelings as wrong but now he didn't mind admitting it. He was proud of his fellow Brit…man and demon alike. He took a sharp breath as the Goddess turned her smile on him in approval and felt like he had somehow passed a test he didn't know he was taking.

Tearing himself free of the mesmerizing deity's gaze Spike stepped up to the bed and sat on it's edge. He noticed that the hand he lifted from the bedcovers was much warmer than it had been earlier. She had receded from the precipice but the poison had still to be dealt with. He lifted the hand to his lips and took a deep breath before bringing his demon forth. He was surprised that there was no accompanying bloodlust and was grateful that his demon had kept it at bay; it would have been somehow distasteful to his senses.

Willow and Giles watched as the gothic scene played out before them. With the mode of dress and the four poster bed it could have been a scene culled straight out of Bram Stoker's Dracula. Giles gave a mental chuckle at the thought of Dracula being so self sacrificing. He'd turned out to be a bit of a vain git - nice line in brides though, added his inner Ripper with a smirk. Remembering suddenly that the Goddess could probably read his mind Giles dismissed any further reminiscences and focussed his full attention at the scene before him.

Both humans were used to seeing vampires bite their prey but they were not used to seeing how gently and delicately a bite could actually be administered. They both recalled the terrible wound left on Buffy's neck after she had persuaded Angel to bite her to save him from his own poisoning incident. The memory triggered twin bursts of anger that the older vampire was willing to take but not to give back the chance of life. The feeling faded, for now, as Spike lifted his head away and placed the hand with the neatly closed bite mark back on top of the quilt. He stepped away from the bed….and promptly dropped in a dead faint.

Willow raised her eyes to the Goddess in horror and Giles began to move forward and then stopped to await Her permission. Gaia smiled her serene smile and indicated to the lifeless vampire.

"All is well. His body prepares it's cure. Go to him while he sleeps; it will take but moments."

True to her word Spike remained unconscious for a little over five minutes. He didn't seem to be suffering unduly but his body twitched involuntarily from time to time. As he began to come round his eyes opened to reveal amber sparkles flecking the normal intense blue. He looked to the concerned faces of his friends and with a mock grimace addressed Willow.

"Your bird's blood has got a kick like The Slayer's infamous eggnog." Both humans winced at the slight miscalculation alcohol wise that Buffy had made when determined to recreate the Christmas spirit…the year before her death…her second death. The hangovers had practically lasted into the new year.

"Child?"

"Sorry ….um…Your Holiness." Spike pulled himself to his feet as he addressed The Goddess, not that he was entirely sure what to call her. The Lady didn't seem too bothered though. "I'm ready Ma'am."

Whatever Willow and Giles expected it certainly wasn't the simple, rather clinical procedure that actually took place. Of course if they had thought about it they would have realised that Tara was never going to bite Spike back, for one thing her teeth were on the blunt side and there was the coma to take into account. For one moment Willow had the mental picture of Spike cutting her lover and dripping his own blood into the wound; that gave her stomach a turn. Both of them were relieved, then, when Spike produced a hypodermic needle and a tourniquet. They watched as he drew up a syringe full of his antibody carrying blood and moved back to the recumbent figure.

Gais placed her hand on the brow of her daughter once again and a scent of roses and honeysuckle filled the air as Spike performed the simple act of injecting his blood into Tara's vein. There was a moment of anguish for the watching humans as Tara's back arched off the bed and she seemed to stop breathing but neither the Goddess nor the vampire seemed perturbed and they could see from the rise and fall of her chest that the lack of breath was an illusion.

Spike stepped away from Tara once again and dropped the syringe to the floor. It had worked; he could feel it…..he could feel her! It was as though he could feel the blood rushing through her veins and the inhalation of the life giving oxygen. He looked in alarm toward the Goddess. She looked back reassuringly.

"It will fade Child, although the connection will remain."

Connection? Wondered Giles, and by her expression Willow did too, what connection? Giles sighed and added it to the mental list of questions to be asked; asking while a Goddess was talking did not, however, seem quite the done thing.

Spike returned to the others with a wan but genuine smile. Giles frowned, seeing that the vampire was on the verge of collapse but he remembered how his touch had caused pain earlier and was loathe to risk the same happening again. His look, however, conveyed his concern and Spike nodded his ability to go on. Willow wondered if they even realised that they did that unspoken talking thing.

A sudden movement from the bed had them all moving forward hopefully.

Tara could smell roses; she loved the smell of country garden flowers but there weren't any roses growing near the library were there? And why was she asleep? She knew that she must be asleep because she was most certainly dreaming, and it was quite the oddest dream she had ever had. Her Goddess stood before her offering her benediction while smiling down on her …wishful thinking, she decided. And what were those sounds? Crying! That sounded like Willow….and Giles!? … Why on earth was he crying? Purring! Now that was really odd, and what was even odder was that it appeared to be coming from Spike yet she could hear it 'inside' her head. Her dream self couldn't see the vampire though. Perhaps it might help if she were to wake up and open her eyes?

That was when she realised that she WAS awake and her eyes were already open.

Then all at once her memories returned; Willow and Giles began to babble and….Oh My Goddess! Tara stared with awe at the figure before her with the perfect silver aura. She bowed her head immediately in devotion to her Goddess. Giles and Willow calmed, realising that Tara was having the same reaction they had just experienced. Spike stood back in the shadows, not wanting to ruin the moment for any of them.

Gaia tipped the blonde girl's head back up gently, her smile as gentle and reassuring as ever and placed her hand on her daughter's head.

"My Child, my Brigid…do you pledge your allegiance to me?"

"Y…yes, M…Mother…willingly." Tara drank in the warmth of the touch and the feelings of love and approval. She still wasn't sure what had happened but she had faith in her goddess and her friends.

"You are my daughter, you are the spirit of Brigid; I rejoice in your return to us."

Gaia turned and placed her hand on Willow's head. "My Child, my Ceridwen…do you pledge your allegiance to me?"

Willow felt unworthy of the honour but the little she had to offer she offered joyously.

"Yes Mother, willingly."

"You are my daughter, you are the spirit of Ceridwen. Do not fear your power child, learn to harness it and listen to those wiser and with experience."

Willow nodded wordlessly. She moved to Tara and sitting on the bed pulled her healed lover into her arms. Giles stood aside and for the first time Tara saw a figure standing in the shadows.

"Come forth Child, you are missed by your sisters."

Tara gasped at her first sight of the elegantly dressed vampire and Willow gave her a squeeze and a smile. Neither of them understood what the Goddess had meant by calling them Spike's sisters but it felt somehow right, as though they were very close to something profound.

Gaia stepped forward to meet the suddenly timid vampire. The others felt the air tingle with power and they held their collective breath as she laid her hand on the platinum curls. Spike shuddered but held his position.

"William Tennyson do you pledge your allegiance to me?" William felt his demon and Spike stand back; the decision was his and his alone. He had no doubts.

"Willingly Mother." Giles gasped, though whether it was the William part of Spike pledging himself to a Goddess of light or the significance of his surname William wasn't sure.

The gasp became universal as the Goddess proceeded to ask a question none had thought possible.

"Demon of the Line of Aurelius, do you pledge allegiance to me, Goddess Mother of the Earth, Gaia?"

The tension was palpable and they were aware that even Gaia couldn't predict the outcome.

The demon came forth, a look of fierce pride and childlike awe vying for control in the amber eyes.

"Willingly, my Goddess Queen. Leader of the Eternal Hunt" The Goddess's form flickered for a moment into that of Diana the Huntress in acknowledgement of his pledge.

Giles and the girls breathed a little easier and Giles shook his head in wonderment yet again.

"Spike, Master of the Line of Aurelius, do you pledge allegiance to me?"

Tears were now flowing unashamedly down his cheeks as Spike felt the pure love of a mother for the first time in over a hundred years. His William was rejoicing and his demon was roaring as he spoke the words

"Willingly Mother."

Gaia led Spike to the others and looked lovingly into his blue, gold flecked eyes.

"You are my son, you are the spirit of Cernunnos, Lord of the Hunt. You are my Child yet you only see the beauty that is my night. It befits your status that you see the beauty in all of my creation; from this moment on you will walk in the day as well as the night. Your sacrifice has born fruit in the health of my daughter, your sister, and your reward is thus. As I will it."

Spike sat down on the bed, hard; the shock of her gift not yet sunk in amid the shock of it all. Willow and Tara positively squealed with glee and hugged him close, crying and laughing.

Gaia had one last task to perform before she left her charges. Not only were they important to her as a mother they were destined to be important to the world and they needed to be protected.

"Rupert Giles, Watcher of Slayers, you are not of my children yet I ask you to grant me a boon."

The group on the bed in a mini puppy pile straightened and listened avidly.

"O…Of course Your Holiness, whatever is within my power." Giles was astonished at her approach and humbled that she felt him worthy of helping her.

"My Children, my Trinity, are very precious to me, yet they are still so very young" she heard the mental protest from the 130 year old vampire and smiled. "Yes Spike of Aurelius, even you." She turned a more serious gaze back to the Watcher. "They need someone to be their mentor, their advocate and their teacher. Will you take on that task? Will you teach Willow how to best use her magic?; will you ensure that Tara's wisdom be heard among those who think that they know better? And will you teach others the true worth of Spike and listen to his heart even though it no longer beats?"

"I will…most willingly."

And with a nod of acknowledgement and a scent of roses the Goddess was gone.

Giles knew that he had taken on quite a task, one that could pit him against the Council and even his friends but looking at the three young people he didn't have a moment's regret. He grinned happily at the sight of Willow and Spike either side of a healthy though tired looking Tara. Part of him was already preparing the research he would be needing to do, on Spike's promised new ability; the Celtic figures associated with the three before him and The Trinity that would prove to be so important. His grin slipped, though, as Spike's exhaustion caught up with him and he passed out in Tara's arms.

Deciding that none of them were going anywhere for a while Willow and Giles pulled the quilt up over the vampire and a sleepy Tara and, with Willow resuming her place by Tara's side Giles took the nearby couch and they all slept.

TBC

A/N Hope that that wasn't too boring for you. For those interested in that sort of thing the deities associated with the three are as follows ( taken from The Idiot's Guide to Celtic Wisdom)

Brigid - Associated with healing and poetic energy.

Ceridwen - Associated with the Cauldron of inspiration

Cernunnos - The horned one of the wild forest (like the lord of the Hunt- stag horns not devil!)

Next chapter sees the guys coming together - was going to be this one but my fingers hurt:D


	4. Chapter 4

Family Ties chapter 4

Sorry for the delay but commitments between June & August are a b***h. So chapters might be a little erratic but they will be along as soon as I can do them. Thank you everyone for your support and I hope this chapter is OK. It's really hard to follow a visit from a Goddess y'know!

Giles watched the three young people sleep. He smiled at the reaction he would get if he dared call the 130 year old Vampire young but he was. In fact he was convinced that what he had witnessed last night was, in many ways, a new birth, or maybe a re-birth. He doubted that it would change Spike's personality too drastically since all the components that were there before were still present, just a little more evenly balanced.

And Tara. When Angel and Wesley had told them of the terminal nature of the monster's bite his heart had almost broken. That the gentlest of them all would be the one to lose their life would be a travesty of justice beyond all measure. Without Spike's intervention they would probably be planning her funeral today.

As he continued to watch he marvelled at how alive the vampire looked while sleeping. It had always been there, at the back of his mind, that the difference between the living and the dead should be more obvious; but until he had been witness to Angel's corpse like state when asleep he hadn't truly appreciated how alive an un-dead creature Spike was. He even breathed with a slow regularity; he dreamed, twitching rather like a cat chasing mice in it's sleep. Giles didn't want to dwell on exactly what Spike might be chasing but from the occasional spates of purring, the little growls and smacking of lips it had seemed tasty! Giles shuddered at the mental picture of fresh young virgins sacrificed on a bed of wheatabix. He rubbed his eyes…he really should have gotten more sleep.

Giles couldn't help but wonder, and worry, how the others would take this turn of events. Just a year ago, and even, to a lesser extent, last night…before his extraordinary and humbling experience with Gaia, he too would have been mistrusting of the English vampire. He had liked the larger than life character for some time, but trusted him…no; in fact he suspected that Spike would have thought less of him if he had blindly trusted him. A problem that Wesley seemed to be having with his own vampiric associate. Giles knew from personal experience how easy it was to trust the 'good' vampire, though he noted absently that despite his trust of Angel he had never actually liked him….a lesson there, he told himself, and he knew from bitter experience how devastating the betrayal could be when that trust was shattered. Now that the soul was anchored and the vampire had the backing of the so-called powers it was a wonder that the puppy eyed git didn't wander round with a halo atop his head - 'probably mess up the hair' Giles sniggered to himself. And Wesley, though a bit of a twit, was the trusting sort and Angel pandered to his ego making for a teeth clenching level of annoyance. But it didn't do to forget that Wesley was Council trained and Angel had always been the exception rather than the rule. He would have to keep an eye on the Watcher; Gaia had given him a sacred trust last night and he rated that above any 'higher being' dressed in a toga and their precious pet project.

Of course Wesley would, like he himself had, grow out of his pomposity. He winced at the memory of his early days in Sunnydale and his interactions with Buffy and her friends. He frowned as he contemplated the young woman who was as a daughter to him, an all too brief smile momentarily banishing the sadness and guilt he felt at how she had been treated by both him and the others after her traumatic return from heaven. He really didn't want to contemplate what these new developments would do to her already fragile state of mind. If there had been one thing that he had been sure about it was that being with Angel, much as he loathed the monster, would do her good; give her someone to rely on while she got back on her feet, but if anything it seemed to be getting worse. He mentally added looking into that to his 'to do' list.

'Angel, Angel, Angel; everything always came back to that damn devil' he thought 'Soul be buggered, the creature is worse than evil…at least evil is honest about what it is' After witnessing Spike's demon and human halves interact he seriously doubted whether Angel would ever convince him of the autonomy of Angelus again.

Suddenly his drifting thoughts were brought back to the present as the morning sun crept across the bed and a pale, slender, hand lifted itself into the ray's path, purple stones on the silver rings sparkling and a distinct lack of accompanying smoke. Giles watched in awe as he bore witness to a sight that no Watcher before him had seen…the rise of a true daywalker.

Oh, he couldn't wait for Angel/us to see what his selfish cowardice had denied him!

"Mornin' Rupes. Looks like another gloriously sunny day in Sunnyhell"

B*T*V*S

They had searched for most of the night. Everywhere that they could think of. Everywhere that Willow might take Tara in a final attempt to find a cure. Knowing that the situation was hopeless would be no barrier to someone as desperate and determined as the red headed witch. In the end, though, they called off the search with the decision to let Tara die in peace in her lover's arms. They were sure that Giles would watch over Willow and bring her back when the time came.

The participation of Giles in their escape from the hospital, AMA, was puzzling, however. Angel thought that the elder Watcher was being extremely imprudent and said so, at great length, to anyone that would listen and even some that wouldn't. Buffy felt a spark of emotion break through the grey walls she hid behind. She was proud that Giles had put the girls first, before duty, just a pity he couldn't have learned that lesson in time to be there for her. She pulled the walls tight around herself once more. It hurt too much to think of the past; but the spark had gotten through, the dark was a little lighter now.

It was a start.

Anya was bemused. Xander's attack, both verbally and physically had driven her straight back to D'Hoffryn but though the Demon Lord had given her enough hints in the past that he wished her to return to the fold he had refused her petition for re-instatement to the rank of vengeance demon. He hadn't been upset with her but had admitted that he was refusing as a favour to a 'colleague of higher standing' and that he had been informed of an alternate destiny for his favourite daughter. Yet he refused to tell her what that destiny was. Just that someone had helped his 'friend' and deserved a reward. Anya wasn't much pleased to be part of someone else's reward but D'Hoffryn had just smiled, a truly scary sight, and reassured her that it would be her reward too. Now she was more puzzled than ever and what was worse, she had been forbidden to get her revenge on Xander by magical means. And she'd had such a good idea, one that would make 'funny syphilis' look like a slight cold. She shrugged off the thoughts and concentrated on tidying the Magic Box ready for opening. No doubt the others would be cluttering it up later, getting in the way of paying customers.

B*T*V*S

Spike, Tara and Willow all awoke at the same moment, the connection that they had felt the night before still in place, only softer, more of a background hum. Spike suspected that Willow's connection to Tara was stronger than to him just as his was stronger to Tara than her. It made him wonder just what this Trinity lark was about. One thing was for sure though; it was the first time in a very long time that he didn't feel alone. He hated feeling alone. One of Angelus's favourite punishments had been to lock him away for weeks on end, in the dark, sometimes even reburied in a coffin, keeping their familial connection open one way so that he could hear the mental screams. It had been worse than the beatings and still haunted his nightmares. Any further thoughts along that track died away as Tara nudged him gently and tapped his hand.

The hand that rested atop the quilt in a small pool of sunlight.

'Bloody 'ell' he thought as he lifted the unharmed appendage into the path of the dawns light, 'It wasn't a dream!' He sat up slowly, as if movement would undo the miracle that had been wrought, Willow and Tara following suit, still clinging together as if they, too, feared an end to an illusion but with tears of happiness both for themselves and for Spike.

Spike, of course, not being a nancy boy refused to sniffle and would never admit to it being a pretty close call. Instead he caught the Watcher's eye and twin smirks appeared as Spike, like Giles, imagined the look on his Grandsire's face at this turn of events. It would be an even better sight than the time Dru accidentally burnt the pillock's eyebrows off after drinking from that circus fire eater. If only he'd been into hair products back then! he'd have gone up like a roman candle.

"Mornin Rupes" he called cheerily "Looks like another gloriously sunny day in Sunnyhell."

Not having had either the energy or the opportunity the night before the other two of the Trinity and Giles took turns in explaining recent events to a puzzled Tara. The look of gratitude and love that she gave her favourite vampire as his role was explained was reward enough itself as far as Spike was concerned. But he wanted to kill Angel at the look of sorrow that crossed his sister's face when told of his abandonment of her and especially his casual dismissal of Willow's pain. By the time they had finished the sun was well up and Giles sent a text message arranging a meeting later at the Magic Box. Best to have any confrontation in a semi public place at least, he thought, pessimistically.

"Reckon I'd better get changed then" Spike mumbled, looking down at his slightly rumpled but still elegant attire. He hadn't realised that he'd spoken loud enough to be heard until the protesting sounds, one could hardly call them words, whimpers maybe, from the girls reached his delicate hearing.

"NO! No way am I swanning round town looking like a reject from an Anne Rice novel."

"But Spik-ee" Willow teased in her most 'Dawnish' manner. "You look sooo cute". Spike didn't know whether to glare at Willow….and Giles, who was sniggering - the bugger! What happened to British solidarity?! Or whether to smile at Tara's gentle giggle; a sound they thought that they would never hear again.

"At least keep it for special occasions….please?" Tara's soulful eyes twinkled with mirth as she pleaded with the new Spike. She could see that despite him acting like his usual self his aura was now completely different. What had been a muddled swirl of black, grey and red was now a clear ocean blue edged in silver and pale grey; colours echoed by Willow who's aura had also altered from it's original blend to royal blue, white and silver. She suspected that her own aura had also adjusted to reflect the colours of the Goddess. Even Giles now had a thin band of silver framing his normal forest green and pale jade.

Spike looked down at the clothes that he had once worn as a human and sighed.

"Anyone ever calls me Lestat and I'll drain em before they know what hit em."

B*T*V*S

Wesley was beside himself with irritation. It would be anger but he was quite aware that he didn't 'do' anger well. Father had had that emotion beaten out of him at an early age. Irritation, however, was something he excelled at. Damn that Giles! Man thinks he can go off at no notice whatsoever and then ring up out of the blue demanding….demanding mind you…a meeting as though he were still in charge round here. Barefaced cheek! Whilst the older Englishman might have more experience and be a shade more ruthless when needs arose Wesley was in no doubt, in his own mind at least, that HE was the one who had the greater knowledge and the ear of the man…well vampire…in charge. He ignored the little voice in his head that queried whether it should be the Slayer who was in charge and set off in a huff for the Magic Box. Damn man had better have a bloody good reason for his deplorable actions!

Then Wesley remembered just what Giles was likely to have been doing and the fact that in all probability the reason for the meeting was to announce Tara's death and his ire and frustration faded to be replaced for sorrow for not only the young witch that he hadn't really gotten to know but also her partner who shouldn't have to know loss this early in her life. The rest of his trip was spent in sombre reflection.

"Anya!" Xander blushed with shame as he came face to face with his…his ex he supposed; though hopefully not for long. He winced as he saw the faint red imprint of his hand on her cheek.

"I…I didn't expect you to be here. I thought…"

"Thought what Xander Harris? That I would run away from the big bad human? That I would be cowed into submission by your childish actions? Anya's voice was as cold as she could make it, and after 1100 years on earth that was pretty cold indeed. She wished that her features would match but she felt the sting of tears in her eyes and willed them not to fall. It became an even harder task when, out of all she had just said, the man she had thought she was going to spend the rest of her life with picked up on the one word that gave proof that he hadn't learned anything from their last encounter.

"Human!" Xander silently cursed the unmanly squeak in his voice as he automatically backed away from the possibly re-demonized girl. "Then you're not….no longer um…."

Anya considered toying with his fear but the frustration of not being able to turn him into a mass of pustulating boils took away any of the fun of making the threat in the first place. So trying, and failing, to hide her hurt at his continuing prejudice she grabbed up an armful of jasmine scented candles and pushed past him toward the shelves, her voice now clipped and charged with pain.

"I am very much still human Xander Harris, and you are very much still dumped." She stopped and turned as her pain at his betrayal overrode her anger allowing a single tear to fall. "If and when you grow up and learn to deal with your prejudices maybe, just maybe, we can become friends but until then consider yourself a mere acquaintance only.

Xander felt as though he had been slapped and the little part of him that saw things clearly, including his own faults, yet never got to be in control told him that he deserved a lot worse than a verbal slap. As usual when his voice of reason made the attempt the rest of his brain misinterpreted it.

"You…you wouldn't do anything…y'know" he wiggled his fingers in what she assumed was a witch like manner.

"You are hardly worth the effort" she paused - no real need for him to know that she'd been refused permission to exact her vengeance. "…at least at the moment" she continued, taking pleasure at the way his complexion paled and his Adam's apple bobbed nervously. "But given sufficient reason…" She tossed her hair in what she hoped was a Cordelia like manner and walked away quickly before the overpowering scent of jasmine made her sneeze and ruined the whole effect.

Xander's voice of reason, undeterred at it's previous failure put forward another point that he could hardly blame Spike for this. It was a point that even Xander could not refute, no matter how much he desperately wanted to. He had to face the fact that nobody was to blame for this situation but himself.

He hated growing up.

B*T*V*S

Giles watched with amusement as Willow and Tara stood, one each side of the mansion's front door, coaxing hands beckoning a distinctly nervous vampire forwards.

"C'mon Spike, it'll be fine. Maybe you'll get a bit of colour" Willow was a California girl thru and thru, the place where the tan was king. But Spike knew better

"Or freckles."

As, it seemed, did Giles. Spike sent him a look which in times past would have had the Watcher reaching for a stake but now just made him smirk. 'Dammit!' One of the perks of being turned was the loss of the damn freckles. Not that he would suggest it as a viable beauty tip.

"Don't you trust your Goddess Spike?" Tara's voice was soft but the tease in the eyes was positively devilish.

"Low blow Glinda."

Tara smiled and held out her hand once again and taking a deep and totally unnecessary breath Spike took his first proper steps in the sun in over one hundred years with no magical gem to act as a protector. As he stepped over the threshold each of his hands was grasped gently by smaller ones and he moved fully into the new day. Into a new un-life.

And his eyes immediately slammed shut in watery protection.

"Bugger, that's bright!"

Giles scrabbled through his pockets for his sunglasses. 'Idiot' he chided himself. As far as Spike's eyes were concerned he had just been thrust into the middle of a supernova.

"Don't worry Spike, we'll get you some of your own later." Willow's voice was sympathetic, and not just for his blurry eyesight….nothing owned by Rupert Giles, the king of tweed, could ever be mislabelled as being fashionable.

Spike, for his part, was thankful, for once, that he couldn't see himself in a mirror.

"Well c'mon" he urged in sudden restlessness, as though he hadn't been the one holding them up with his sudden attack of nerves "Scoobies to surprise and vampire tossers to torment. Day's not getting any younger y'know."

With the three simultaneous slaps to the head it was a wonder he didn't have a concussion; he grinned at the warm feeling that was not just from the sunlight soaking through his skin.

B*T*V*S

"Where's the beautiful Cordelia?" Xander's interest in the whereabouts of his ex- girlfriend had an already surly Angel sending a glare his way, which was nice. It was always a good thing to upset his least favourite vampire; Spike only coming a (very) close second to the souled wonder. However his actual mission of enquiring about a girl he no longer gave more than the odd passing thought had been to make Anya jealous…and that had been a dismal failure, if her total lack of discernable interest was anything to go by.

"On her way back to L.A. and then probably to Rome to shoot a hair commercial." supplied Wesley wearily. Having the misfortune to endure his boss alternately ranting and then brooding all morning he wasn't inclined to think well of the pretty actress/model/receptionist.

"Huh?!"

"My thought exactly" offered Doyle to Xander's wordless comment. He was actually a little hurt that she had just upped and left without even a goodbye; he had thought that they had begun to get closer lately.

"It seems that she became incensed over the poor quality of models used in a magazine and contacted the editor claiming that she could do better. He asked for her portfolio and the rest, as they say, is history. She got the call last evening." Wesley had to admit that the looks of complete indifference from Dawn and Buffy were wounding. They had dropped everything to come to this Godforsaken hell hole after all.

"Always knew that hair of hers would become more successful than she would" sniped Xander, still put off by Anya's lack of green eyed jealousy.

"You're just traumatized because your mom used to cut your hair using a pudding basin and the garden shears."

"You promised you'd never tell!" Xander did a double take, mouth opened in a cartoon style O before his brain supplied a word.

"Willow!" And then another fact crashed in on him, on all of them.

"TARA!!"

"Oh My God!"

"You're alive!? How…I mean…you ARE alive right?" Buffy's query was a little more subdued than the exclamations of Dawn and Xander, but one never knew, on the hell mouth, just what constituted 'alive' . That was something that Buffy was an expert at.

Tara and Willow were a little overwhelmed and a little intimidated by the mix of welcoming and suspicious looks. Dawn had even dropped the kitten that Doyle had given her…he really was a sweet man, er, demon. And to her amazement Buffy had okayed it. Of course Angel's immediate refusal to have it in the house…her house….had triggered that old familiar glint in the Slayer's eyes. The one that usually resulted in someone nursing a broken nose but in this case resulted in something even better; an actual independent decision, and a spark of, albeit brief, fire. She had named the pale ginger kitten Peaches. It seemed to annoy Angel for some reason!

Giles could see that Tara was feeling rather reticent and Willow was hovering protectively. He also noted that Spike was standing behind him, out of immediate sight; whether to give Tara centre stage or make an entrance himself he wasn't sure; probably a bit of both.

Giles reached around and pulled Spike off the doorstep and into full view. He had expected uproar at the arrival of the banned vampire. He did not expect, nor did he condone, the slamming of said vampire up against the wall so that he was pinned like a butterfly by Angel's superior strength. Spike, however, made no attempt to fight back.

" 'Lo Peaches, how they hangin'" Spike grinned his trademark smirk, knowing that it would further infuriate the volatile older vamp. To both their amazements, however, and before Angel could attempt to throttle the bane of his existence two sets of strong arms tore the walking forehead away and propelled him into an ungainly heap on the floor.

Giles' intervention didn't surprise Spike in the slightest. The Watcher had become positively clingy since his audience with Gaia, and though even torture wouldn't drag the truth from Spike he didn't really mind. He'd never had anyone except his mum care about him before.

The other set of arms, however, were a total surprise. Who would have thought that Anyanka had that sort of strength. Must be all that shelf stacking and orgasm exercise Spike mused as he righted himself from the sprawl he'd landed in.

"Thanks Pet, Rupes. Never was my ambition to become a wall ornament."

The constant cross-talking and babbling that had begun at their entrance only increased at the violent actions of their leader. As Willow and Tara rushed to their brother and Wesley tried to help an embarrassed and angry Angel to his feet only to be brushed aside Giles decided that enough was enough.

"QUIET!"

Wesley flinched at the power in the word of command. That was Ripper talking, and as much as Wesley thought himself superior to the more experienced Watcher he knew better than to cross Ripper.

Angel, on the other hand, had no such compunction.

"Tara, Willow, get away from him" he gestured towards his grandchilde, "he's dangerous. You should both know better after being in Sunnydale so long."

As the room quietened and Willow and Tara completely ignored Angel's directive Buffy couldn't drag her eyes away from Spike. He seemed different somehow; and there was something about his arrival that was tugging at her brain, never, she had to admit, the best place to look for answers even on a good day. But the overwhelming feelings that washed over her at the sight of the bluer than blue eyes and the platinum hair was the same one that she experienced every time she saw him since her return,

Grief, anger and a strange sense of longing. Buffy knew that the others thought that her emotional response to Spike was hatred, but it wasn't. She had no reason to hate him. He had helped to defeat Acathla and had tried to protect Dawn. She had even heard of some of the things that he had done for Dawn and the scoobies after she had died, although nobody wanted to talk about that time, whether for fear of upsetting her or themselves she wasn't sure and hadn't been able to bring herself to ask. It was just that she couldn't handle the fact that while Spike was, technically, dead he was more alive than she was. He overflowed with life while she felt nothing but a vague grief for passion lost and a bubbling anger when she saw what she suspected was pity in his eyes, and possibly understanding.

She would be damned if she would be pitied by a vampire!

She didn't ask herself just what experiences in Spike's own life, both pre and post turning would enable him to understand what she was going through. To do that would be an act of rationality, and Buffy didn't want to be rational. She wanted to go back to the simplicity of heaven. At least most of her did. But the little spark of fire that had been ignited inside her wanted to know what the hell was going on and why Willow and Tara were clucking around the bleached menace like mother hens; and why Tara was able to cluck at all. Not that she wasn't ecstatic about her seemingly miraculous return to health. Giles' tone, however, made her hold her tongue. She almost chuckled at Wesley's display of humility. Ripper could do that to a person.

Angel had had just about all he could stand for one day, hell, for one lifetime. First Cordy deserts him; then the girl that he had said would certainly die turns up looking fit and well and now…..

Angel sniffed, ignoring the 'eeww' at his action from the youngest Summers. What was that unpleasant….he looked down to see that the kitten that he had forbidden Dawn to have had just peed on his Gucci loafers.

"Why you rabid, verminous rodent…" Before he could complete the kick aimed at the tiny animal it was scooped up in a pale, long fingered hand. Buffy and Dawn, both of whom had begun to dash to the kitten's rescue stopped dead as Spike lifted the now purring kitty to eye level.

" 'Ello little'un. Not seen you around before. Looks like somebody's been dabbling in kitten poker."

Dawn moved forward to take the ecstatically happy kitten that was busy licking Spike's fingers. She looked up at her vampire protector, brother, father and tears welled up in her eyes. She had missed him so much. He gave her a smile and a wink; he understood and she knew that he had missed her just as much.

"Mr Doyle won him. Buffy said I could keep him!"

Spike noticed the Slayer wince at the sheer disbelief in her younger sister's statement. 'Not your fault Pet' he thought. 'Still the best sister and surrogate mother the Nibblet could have….just not quite yourself at the moment. It'll get better, you'll see'

Giles switched into librarian mode and soon had everybody sitting round the slightly too small table. Well anybody that mattered; Spike in between Tara and Willow with Dawn next to Tara, Buffy next to Dawn, then himself, Anya and Doyle. Oh dear, he mused, no room for Angel, Wesley or Xander…pity.

Both Xander and Angel stood as far away from each other as they could get and still be in the thick of it. In fact Angel positively loomed, standing directly behind Buffy, his hands set proprietarily on the back of her chair.

Giles and the Trinity had discussed just what to divulge as they made their way to the Magic Box and it had been decided that the talk of a Trinity, especially one involving Spike would be best left till they had done some private research. So with a rapt audience they told the others of the cure, the meeting of The Goddess and, in general, about her blessing.

All eyes turned to Wesley. It had been his expert opinion that the ritual could not be performed successfully.

"I still say that it is impossible. It must be a trick. Spike has conned you all somehow." He wished that he felt as positive of his position as he sounded. After all…

"Angel was quite categorical in his belief that the ritual could not be completed without the loss of both parties." Wesley was surprised at how little guilt he felt at passing the buck to his boss; he was saving all his guilt for nearly getting Tara killed by listening to the pillock.

"Somebody has to be lying" Angel stated with absolute authority. "There is no way that a vampire demon can face The Goddess or any other benevolent higher being, and survive the experience."

"Well I guess that just makes Spike a better man and a better demon than you doesn't it?" Willow's icy tone sent a chill down Angel's spine. This witch had power, real power; why had he not noticed it before? He wisely kept his mouth shut.

"Oh and I forgot to mention that as a reward for his courage and sacrifice The Goddess gave Spike a gift" Giles voice had taken on a distinct air of smugness.

"Gift? What gift?" Wesley, Angel and Anya spoke simultaneously though only Anya's query held a happy excitement - she knew that the Gods did not bestow their gifts lightly and they were always worth receiving. Both Wesley and Angel felt a shiver of apprehension.

Spike rose to his feet and gave a cocky grin as he sauntered out into the pool of sunlight that poured through the display window.

Buffy and Dawn gaped at the sight of ….what was Giles calling him? A Daywalker? Surely that was a myth, yet here he stood, beautiful and ethereal and Buffy experienced another moment of aliveness vicariously through Spike's obvious joy. Perhaps pushing him away wasn't doing her as much good as Angel claimed it would. She seemed to feel more…well just feel, period, in his company. She winced as Dawn's delighted squeal cracked decibel records and looking around her she noted that everyone was as pole axed as she was.

Wesley began to frantically polish his glasses, absently making a note to get contact lenses before he actually became Giles and to try to interview Spike as soon as possible for the Watcher diaries. He looked at the older vampire and gulped. Angel was not taking this well, not well at all.

Everybody suddenly backed away as with an almighty roar of anger and hatred Angel rushed toward his soon to be dusty grandchilde. Unable to get close enough to tackle the light bathed figure he grabbed a stake from the table and….

Found himself face to pointy end of a crossbow.

Giles motioned for him to back up and shot Spike a look of exasperation as the laughter coming from the pool of light was only inflaming the situation. He looked once again at the pain and jealousy on Angels's face and decided to have a serious talk with his young vampiric charge about proper behaviour….eventually.

"Um…would this be a good time to mention that I had a bit of a vision and we've all got to go to England to stop an apocalypse?" Ahh thought Doyle, nothing like a well timed apocalypse to break the tension.

"Bloody hell" came three English accented exclamations while Buffy wondered if they had Starbucks over there.

TBC


	5. Chapter 5

Family Ties Chapter 5

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A/N This is one of those character development chapters that are so necessary to the story but can seem a bit slow.

.

It took some time for things to quieten down once again, although Angel's constant pacing indicated that quiet did not necessarily mean calm. Giles noted this and gave himself a mental reminder to keep a very close eye on the vampire. Just because he was no longer evil didn't mean that he was necessarily good. He also noted, with amusement this time, that the self-proclaimed 'Big Bad' was being subjected to a severe bout of mother hen syndrome. Tara was pouring a healing concoction down him to soothe the throat bruised by Angel's hand after his abortive attempt to throttle the un-life out of him while Willow was lecturing him on how taunting cranky sulky Grandsire's was not the smartest of moves. Giles thought that he should agree with Willow on that one but the sight of Angel's shock and discomfort at the revelations had put a warm fuzzy feeling deep inside him that he would treasure for a long time to come. Giles laughed as Dawn once again foisted her kitten on the blond vampire and it, with total trust, snuggled into the crook of his arm and went to sleep.

Giles had been surprised that Buffy had allowed the teen to keep the animal; she never had before but he hoped that it was a positive sign that she was returning to them. Of course Doyle could be very persuasive…maybe his type of demon had thrall? It was the only way he could explain the fact that not five minutes ago he had agreed to take a grey tabby kitten. He was relieved that he wasn't the only one conned into pet ownership since Anya was now the proud parent of a white Persian ball of fluff. It obviously proved that only bunnies were evil since she kept sneaking off to the stock room to check up on it. When caught she put on her business face and claimed that as a mouser it would earn it's keep. Giles didn't have the heart to point out that they had never seen a mouse on the premises; he suspected that the kitten's true worth would be as a companion to the heartbroken ex-demon. He knew from a few brief comments that she and Xander had split up and that would explain the kicked puppy look on the boy's face but they had split up several times before and he couldn't see their separation lasting for ever, which was a pity because privately he thought that she could do so much better than the prejudiced little git. Giles winced at his inner Ripper who was getting increasingly vocal of late and turned his attention back to kittens. Doyle had kept a kitten for himself 'as a souvenir' against Angel's will, and had one picked out for Willow, though he would probably come up with another now that Tara was back with them. He was just glad that he had managed to convince the half Brachen demon not to offload any of his winnings on Spike. He thought that the poor vampire had had enough shocks for one day; he would certainly find it hard to hang onto the tattered remains of his 'Big Bad' image with a pet kitty cat in tow, especially since the species seemingly had a particularly soft spot for vampires, or at least this vampire.

As everyone finally settled, amidst the grumbling of having to make room for those who had previously been left out, Giles absently wondered if they could get a group rate at the local cattery since taking pets to Europe was not an option. Giles found himself feeling less like a Watcher and more like the custodian of a three ring circus and realised that he wouldn't change it for the world. As he heard Angel demand order he amended that thought to not changing MOST of it.

"So there was nothing specific then? No clues as to where to search for this prophecy? If indeed it is an actual prophecy. For God's sake Doyle what use are your visions if they raise more questions than answers?"

Doyle flushed red at Angel's rebuke. In the early days of their association he had considered them to be friends, but the more pressure the champion for the PTB felt, the more he took it out on those around him. Doyle suspected that was the main reason that Cordelia had decided to jump ship, and he couldn't altogether blame her. Not when their boss was like this anyway. He sometimes wished that he had the same proactive attitude that the Valley girl had but he had become used to having his efforts belittled, not that he felt it fair, he was only the messenger after all. But he didn't see it ever being any other way and he was still at least a little proud that he could play his part in keeping the world safe from his more evil brethren. Given his acceptance of being constantly undermined and harassed it came as a big surprise when a voice rose in his defence….that was new!

"I disagree Angel." Giles frowned at the senior vampire's attitude. It seemed that brooding a lot and actually being intelligent didn't always have to go together any more than quiet and calm did. "Answers to questions can always be found but if one lacks the right questions to ask how is one to know where to search and what to search for?" While he was pleased to see the constipated look cross Angel's face he gave Spike a sharp kick under the table to quell the laughter that threatened to bubble to the surface - for a supposed Big Bad the younger vampire had quite an infectious laugh and he knew it wouldn't take much to set him off. Besides he wanted to keep the dialogue flowing to gather as many ideas as possible, although his own suspicion that the Trinity aspect may have it's part to play was something he wanted to keep to himself until he had as much information as possible. Spike may be able to take care of himself but Willow and Tara, despite their magic abilities were still incredibly vulnerable.

Doyle straightened a little at the support and although directing his reply to Angel he nodded his thanks to the Watcher who unlike the vampire or their own Watcher seemed to be seeing the bigger picture here and understood that his visions were meant to guide rather than offer pat solutions.

"As I said Angel, I saw London; a giant serpentine demon that looked like something out of a Japanese horror flick and hordes of lesser demons and vampires rampaging through the streets - you know, your regular apocalypse hellmouth world-ending situation. Except that London doesn't have a hellmouth of course."

"Are you sure it was London? Could it possibly have been Cleveland's hell mouth?" Doyle didn't appreciate Wesley's condescending tone but it was a valid question.

"Not unless Cleveland has started using big red double decker buses and the Queen decided to relocate Buckingham Palace."

Wesley simply nodded. London was rather unmistakable even to those who had never been there.

Tara had been sitting as silently as she always did. With her nervous stutter and her mouse like demeanour she was seldom listened to when she did attempt to speak. And in her family women seldom spoke unless spoken to. She just hoped that somebody else, somebody more confident, would have the same thought that she had just had; unfortunately nobody showed any indication of it and she vowed to have a word with Giles in private after. He never seemed to get annoyed with her halting speech which usually meant that her stutter almost vanished. She wished that some of the others would have that effect on her but unfortunately the opposite was true. Having made her decision not to set herself up for a fall she was suddenly overwhelmed with the fragrance of roses. Breathing in the powerful yet calming scent her inner strength seemed to grow a little and before she knew what she was doing there was a lull in the conversation and she was speaking.

"I…I w…wondered if it w…were p…possible…" Although she had raised her voice to above whisper level and her stutter, though present was at least allowing her to complete words quite quickly it made little difference as Wesley, with a polite yet dismissive 'excuse me' proceeded to cut across her in an effort to make a general comment about hell mouths to Angel with the inevitable result of immediately driving her back into her shell.

Giles recognized instantly that this was one of those situations that Gaia had entreated him to handle. To ensure that her shyest child be heard. Tara, like her two pseudo siblings was extremely intelligent and he had no doubt that whatever she had to say was worth listening to and would, even if it didn't answer their questions, add to their general knowledge surrounding the riddle. He noted with satisfaction that Buffy was scowling at Wesley over his rudeness, and while a part of him was selfishly happy that she didn't look impressed with the other Brit, it being bad enough that Angel & Co. had made him feel useless without his Slayer aligning herself with the prat. The greater part of him, however; the part of him that saw Buffy as the daughter he had never had was pleased to see her pre-tower personality peeking out from her depression. He didn't comment on her attitude though he saw that Spike had also spotted the fire in the hazel green eyes; it was best to let things progress at their own pace as long as the fates allowed. In the meantime he had a Watcher to deflate.

"No Wesley. Tara has as much right to speak at this meeting as you or any of us. And given her recent experience I for one am glad that she is still able to do so." It was a less than subtle dig at Wesley's failure to correctly translate the ritual and he nodded curtly in acknowledgement and apology. Tara smiled in gratitude at Giles and favoured Wesley with such a look of disappointment that he felt as guilty as a little boy faced with his misdeeds.

Tara felt Willow's hand clasp hers in encouragement and Spike's blue gold flecked eyes were full of confidence in her ability. She took a deep breath and with much more authority began again.

"I just w…wondered if Mr Doyle's v…vision could be an indication of the f…forming of a new Hellmouth I…in L…London. After all Hellmouths have to c…come from somewhere don't they?"

"Good Lord!" exclaimed the two Watchers simultaneously while the admiring looks from most of the others present made Tara blush. Whether her idea played out or not Tara felt proud that she had at least been able to contribute. She was particularly grateful to Giles; without his support she doubted that she would have had the courage. She would never upset her lover and her new brother by admitting it but she had felt like the weak link in their Trinity even though they would strenuously deny it. She was glad to be able to pull her own weight for once.

"Is it possible Giles? Is this how hell - mouths are created?"

It was Buffy's first contribution to the debate and she felt a little self-conscious at the attention her innocuous question attracted. Surely she hadn't been that bad! Her mind side-stepped the question neatly as Giles soft tones, a sound that she had missed so much, answered her.

"Indeed Buffy; I believe that it is entirely possible. No-one knows exactly hell-mouths form. It is suspected that like the pressure of lava in a volcano, evil builds in a weak area until the correct ritual at the right time causes an eruption resulting in a new mouth of hell."

"Will we be able to stop it forming or is this a containment job?"

Wesley frowned as Buffy addressed her question not to him, the Watcher appointed by Angel to answer exactly these sorts of queries, but to Giles who had just waltzed in like he owned the place…. He hoped that nobody noticed his blush as he realised the sheer stupidity of that thought…Giles did own the place.

"That will be impossible to ascertain until we are on site but while arrangements are being made I do believe that we have several books that theorize on the subject that we can consult."

"Oooh research party!" Spike, Tara and Giles chuckled at Willow's exclamation and little bounce in her seat. Even an audience with Gaia couldn't stop her inner nerd getting out.

"I hardly think that we should rely on children to research…"

"It was those 'children' that researched a way to send your sorry souless self to hell Angelus…and it's those children who did all the hard work in protecting the world while you just popped in with the odd cryptic warning now and then. For goodness sake Xander was more use than you were."

"Hey!"

"Hey!"

Dawn sniggered at the twin protests. Who would have thought that Angel and Xander finally agreed on something, even if it was only to disagree with Giles. As the conversation once again descended into snapping and sniping Dawn watched Spike as he watched Buffy. It was still there, she thought, that spark that had always ignited the fire between them. Even if neither of her two favourite people in the world were exactly the same any more. She wondered, with a maturity that belied her years, and would astound anyone used to her normal teenage thought processes, i.e, boys, clothes and music, whether, given the opportunity, the less manic vampire and the more introspective Slayer could find a new start; preferably one without trying to kill each other in the process. She certainly hoped so because she was convinced that Buffy needed Spike to bring her back to life properly. She certainly didn't need Angel sticking his oar in and turning her against the younger vampire. She had tried to tell Buffy of all the good that Spike had done while she had been away but it was as though she never seemed to quite understand how important both he and Tara had been to keeping her safe and as happy as she could be under the circumstances and keeping Sunnydale from becoming an all you can eat buffet. In fact now that she came to think of it, it wasn't so much that she didn't understand, more that she felt guilty for it being hard for them to carry on. Did her big sister really think that she was expendable. That they could replace her as easily as the Council replaced a dead Slayer? Well if she did then Angel certainly wasn't helping to disprove it because he had taken over every aspect of both their lives, ordering her about like he was her father or something, and that was just eeeeww. She really needed to speak to Spike. If anyone could make Buffy happy again it was him. And to see Tara well again was just amazing. Dawn had given Angel and Wesley her patented smug smirk, learned from a certain peroxide hottie, as Spike's role in her healing was revealed. She was a bit worried at how close Spike, Willow and Tara seemed now. She hoped that they wouldn't cut Buffy out of their relationship….Nah, what was she thinking; all three of them loved her sister, and her, just in different ways. The trick was going to be to get Buffy to see that…and to get Angel out of the way long enough for them to try.

B*T*V*S

It was dusk by the time that the Scooby meeting and research/welcome home Tara party had finished, not that there had been food or drink at said impromptu party, just lots of hugs and well wishes, which surprised Tara since she hadn't thought herself so well liked, always being on the outside like Spike; tolerated because she was Willow's girlfriend rather than liked in her own right. Well there might have been food and drink, especially if Xander had had his way…a Scooby meeting alone being needful of pizza and sodas at the very least, and Spike hadn't eaten for far too long; the new link that they shared didn't give them access to each others thoughts, or not yet anyway because who knew what would happen given time; but she could feel his hunger, though thankfully not his demon's bloodlust. Unfortunately for both hungry vampires and hungry construction workers Wesley had been horrified at the risk to his precious books from spilled coke and tomato sauce…or even worse, he had added with a dark glare at Spike…'please!' thought Tara, Spike could be a very dainty eater when he put his mind to it, and when there wasn't a throat to be torn out….though the Watcher may have had a point about Xander; more than one tome in Giles' collection bore silent witness to Xander's eating habits. A sudden thought occurred to Tara as they were putting away the files and notes, no solid conclusions having been drawn.

"Where are we going to stay?" she asked nobody in particular, aware that there were now three of them to house and the likelihood of Spike being welcome at Revello drive being as slim as the vampire in question.

It was a situation that the others didn't seem to get, except Willow, Spike and Giles who frowned in consternation.

Angel thought that the answer was obvious. He didn't know Tara well but she seemed nice enough; obviously not too bright though. It puzzled him why so many of the others had been upset that he hadn't risked his, far more valuable life - in his humble opinion, and obviously in the opinion of the PTB - to save a perfectly normal, slightly talented witch. She didn't seem to have half the power of Willow so except that she was Willow's girlfriend he hadn't got the point. But he did know the answer; or at least so he thought.

"You will be coming back to Our place with Willow, of course. Buffy will have it no other way."

Buffy silently wondered just when she had become a ventriloquist's dummy because though Angel had been right in telling Tara that her home was on Revello drive she was finding it increasingly annoying to be spoken for like some sort of idiot child. She didn't dare comment though because the resulting lecture would last half the night and for the very first time in a long time she found herself feeling hungry. Her hunger was overwhelmed, however, by her surprise at Tara's reply.

"But what about Spike?"

"What about Spike!?" replied Angel sharply.

"It's okay Glinda, the crypt is my home, remember. It's plenty good enough for the likes of me and I won't be far away."

Spike realised that whatever this new bond was it didn't like the idea of them being separated but to make a fuss would only make the others suspicious that there was more to last night than a minor miracle. His gut told him that Giles was right to withhold the details of their connection. It would put his ladies under a spotlight of at best benign interest and at worst outright suspicion. And if Angel realised that he was in any way connected to the girls he wouldn't have them in the house, and it was obviously his word that ruled…not so different from his Angelus days in that respect, except that Angelus's orders to his fledgling Childe had been of a much more intimate and sadistic nature than Angel's lording it over the telly remote. He did wonder why their familial link hadn't picked up on the new bond though. He supposed that it had been weakened by decades of non use and he didn't dare try to find out if it was still in place since the last person he wanted in his head was the Great Brooding One.

Willow understood Spikes reasoning instinctively but that didn't mean that she had to like it. She would just have to find a way to work on Buffy. She had been a bad friend lately, though Goddess knew she had reasons aplenty, but Buffy, and Dawn, obviously needed their proper family around them at the moment; she glanced at Xander who was alternating glaring at Spike, which she didn't appreciate one little bit, and making cow eyes at Anya who was giving him the very cold shoulder. Willow had the feeling that it was more than one of their normal tiffs but this new maturity she seemed to have gained in her communion with Gaia steered her away from her normal reaction of automatically siding with her childhood friend. Anya wasn't the type to cut herself off like this and Xander was exactly the type to have done or said something to drive the blunt yet sensitive ex-demon away. But as Xander's kindergarten buddy she didn't feel that Anya would open up to her, she needed to prove herself first and that took time. She would speak to Giles about the situation. He worked closely with his assistant and she knew that he both respected and liked her. If anyone could get the facts it was Giles. And if he ended up with another stray to look after she was sure he could handle it - though she suspected that if given the right opportunity Giles could have an entirely different relationship with Anyanka than he did with herself, Tara and Spike/William. It wasn't till her mind had stopped drifting that she realised that Tara had acquiesced to Spike's refusal to rock the boat. She also noticed Dawn's anger at having her big brother back thwarted and Buffy's surprise at Tara's attitude to the vampire. She almost chuckled out loud at what she suspected was a hint of jealousy in those not quite as dead as they previously were hazel eyes. She had a feeling that they were in for an interesting time.

In England! Wow! It suddenly registered in the witch's brain, alongside the I've got Tara back, a new brother, a substitute father who actually cares and a blessing from my Goddess parties that were going on inside her that she would be going to England - at least she hoped so because by the sound of it Angel was trying to dictate the players in the upcoming drama but she wasn't too concerned as he wasn't having much luck. Doyle, who had given her a beautiful little kitten, well not actually given but it was waiting for her at home - jet black as befits a familiar he had said, sweet man. Anyway, Doyle kept citing the Powers That Be as his source every time he told Angel that individuals he had cut out had to be there….including herself, Giles, Tara and….ooooh, Spike! That didn't go down well she thought as the elder vampire started to look distinctly constipated. At the inclusion of Dawn the elder vampire groaned and the Key dashed over to her big brother to exchange a victorious high five. Willow watched Buffy smile at the antics…'that's right Buffy' she thought. 'Let yourself see what we all saw last summer'

Wesley protested at the inclusion of what he termed as the 'superfluous watcher', at least he wouldn't be repeating that in a hurry, she thought Not after being caught between the twin Summers glares of Buffy and Dawn and the rumbling growl of Spike's demon; Willow wondered if she would get a chance to visit the British Museum. If she hadn't become a Scooby and demon ass kicking witch she would have liked to have worked at the prestigious institution. It struck her as a very Gilesish place.

As the group were about to split up Giles had a sudden urge to not let Angel whisk his Slayer away so quickly. Whilst in times past he would have acted on his instincts, that was back in his Ripper days; of late he had been far more cautious. His caution, and his watcher training, had caused him to distrust Spike for far too long, even when it was the vampire who was doing what he himself should have been doing and caring for his Slayer and her family. He had since learned that his Ripper side while often not cautious enough had good instincts. He gave in to them now. He had seen more life in Buffy tonight, surrounded by her friends than in all the little glimpses he had caught of her as Angel shuffled her from place to place in an attempt to keep her isolated from anyone not of his choosing. Even if he could only prise her from his grasp for a few hours it would be something.

"Buffy, Dawn, what say we celebrate Tara's return with a meal. I haven't spoken to you properly in quite an age" Buffy's eyes misted as she saw the emotion in her Watcher's eyes although his voice was calm, at least until it broke slightly when he admitted. "I've missed you very much."

Buffy looked towards Dawn who had hope written all over her face and yet Buffy suspected that she expected the request to be denied. She also saw Angel and Wesley both about to speak and jumped in before her courage failed her or her jailer, and where did that come from, she thought, managed to put his foot down.

"That'd be great Giles. I could eat a horse, or at least a salad with full fat dressing; and I can't think of a better reason to celebrate than Tara being healed" she gave a genuinely grateful smile to Spike who dipped his head shyly at the gesture. Buffy was shocked, and intrigued. The in your face vampire obviously had more layers to him than she had thought.

"Well that's settled then. Willow you are of course invited too." Giles added and before he could think of a valid reason to include Spike his saviour came in the form of a brown haired cat carrying teenager.

"And Spike." It wasn't a request but rather a demand, that much was clear and both Buffy and Giles, sensing the refusal on Angel's lips, quickly agreed. Anything that pissed off Angel suited Giles and anything that kept Dawn happy suited Buffy. At a whispered comment from Willow Giles made an addition which surprised the others.

"Anya dear, I would be grateful if you would agree to accompany us, if of course, you have nothing else planned."

Nobody else in the party party commented as Giles made his request and they could see from her almost overwhelmed reaction that he had done the right thing.

Anya was shocked. She hadn't realised that they had remembered that she was there. They seldom did and Xander always pestered her to keep quiet as she embarrassed him with her forthright comments. She could see also that the invitation was genuine. But what if they asked Xander too, as they surely would. She decided to take a chance anyway, she could always slip away if it all became too much.

"I would like that very much, as long as you're sure that I won't be intruding?"

Giles and Willow were both about to reply when Buffy beat them to it. She was surprised that Anya would think herself to be in the way; she was a Scooby like the rest of them wasn't she. A little niggle in the back of her mind asked how she could know her place in the team when Xander was always putting her 'in her place' every time she tried to make a contribution.

"Of course you won't Anya. You're family," Buffy knew that she had said the right thing when Anya beamed a 1000 megawatt smile at her.

Xander saw that this was the perfect opportunity to talk to his girlfriend without her being able to walk out on him…again.

"I'll come with, guys. It's been ages since we had a bronze night."

Giles noticed Anya's face fall and Willow's subtle shake of the head. He stepped in before anyone else could accept Xander's self invitation… which in itself was the height of bad manners.

"I don't think that that would be a good idea Xander; you have work tomorrow and I would never forgive myself if you got into trouble for partying on a work night. And besides, you will need to be in your employer's good graces to get the time off at short notice."

Xander nodded but they could tell from his expression that he wasn't happy. He couldn't quibble with Giles reasons but he suspected that they weren't the only ones. He felt like he was being shut out, replaced and he didn't see it as any coincidence that as much as he was being pushed out the peroxide blond menace was being pulled in. He said a brusque goodbye and with a last accusing glare at Spike and a disappointed nod to Anya he left.

"Wesley follow him and make sure he gets home safe." instructed the older vampire. While he personally couldn't give two hoots whether Xander got home safe or was eaten by a fungus demon he knew that Buffy wouldn't forgive him for killing one of her friends. Friends who were being more bothersome than he had envisaged. He was the only one that Buffy needed, or that she should want; they had a destiny…and he was damned if his pathetic Grandchilde or the inanely titled scoobies were going to get in the way of his destiny. He was the Champion of The Powers That Be, dammit! And Buffy was his reward. And there was one thing that both he and Angelus were agreed on. Neither of them were good at sharing.

Angel brightened a little as he contemplated the trip to England. Perhaps when they reached his mother country the Sunnydale contingent, and especially Buffy and Dawn, would see Spike for the uncouth, ill educated anachronism that he obviously was. Once Buffy saw the less than salubrious part of London where the younger vampire's accent marked him as being from and saw that he didn't fit in any circles that they would be mixing in she would realise the truth. Angel admitted to himself that he had never been too interested in his Grandchilde's origins, that had been Drusilla's department but he knew one thing without a doubt…Buffy would soon see , as would they all, that Spike was beneath her. Perhaps he would tell her of the time, at the very beginning, before he had the 'William' beaten out of him, well perhaps he didn't have to go into too much detail on that, but he could tell her of the fake Giles type accent the boy had affected to try and impress him and how quickly his own gutter English had replaced it. And she would cast him away like the irrelevance that he was. And if she didn't then he would have to resort to other, stronger methods to get rid of his rival….NO! Not rival, where the hell did that thought come from! His idiot offspring was no real threat. He was just an ill educated, North London street brat with a low cunning that had kept him 'alive' for far too long. He certainly wasn't worthy of the Slayer, or the ability to walk in the sun.

His bastard Grandchilde would pay dearly for upstaging his Lord and Master, and Buffy would be free of her unhealthy fascination with the peroxide pest. But not tonight he acknowledged as the little group trooped out of The Magic Box together. Tonight they would drag his Slayer further away from him. And tomorrow….tomorrow he would have to arrange a plane transport for a coffin while the no longer daylight challenged interloper got to sit in a proper seat…to sit where he should be, next to Buffy, in the sunlight.

Soul or no soul there was one thing that Angel knew for sure and that was that there would be one less member of the Sunnydale crew returning from England and that the one remaining behind would be dust scattered to the four winds.

TBC

A/N I swear to all that is holy that I will get them on that plane next chapter even if I have to beg Richard Branson to lay on a special flight! Oh and anyone who is insulted by the description of a North London accent as gutter English - it's Angel's opinion not mine. As a South London girl - Tooting to be exact, I would never diss the greatest city in the world (not that I'm biased or anything. LOL)


	6. Chapter 6

FAMILY TIES Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I don't own anything Buffy or Angel related, Joss Whedon does ( but he probably did a deal with a demon to get them - allegedly) I also have no connection to any descendents of the Tennyson family and Spike's branch is totally fabricated.

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Spike gazed in secret wonder at his dinner companions sitting around the restaurant table. It had been so long since he was welcome anywhere, since he was treated with respect; at least it had been a long time as a vampire. Poor William had never known the acceptance of his peers and was threatening to burst into tears, or even worse…poetry, at the joy of it. His demon, meanwhile, was terrified of making a social gaff, it's own kinds notion of a group gathering usually resulting in a last demon standing scenario and a mop and bucket on standby to clear away the blood. It had spent the first few minutes of the outing trying to bring William down to earth enough to show him what to do and what not to do. Of course neither aspect tended to remember that Spike held the balance between them and had no qualms about mixing with either demons or humans. He just let them get on with it in a corner of his mind while he enjoyed the evening. William was right about that…it had been too long since he was treated as anything even approaching an equal.

As he perused the artwork on the walls of the pleasant Chinese restaurant that they had chosen for their meal; the Bronze, the usual venue, having been voted too teenage for a proper sit down celebration, Spike noticed that Tara was giving him puzzled looks. He raised an eyebrow in query but she gave a shy smile and a little shake of the head which he took to mean that it wasn't urgent and they would discuss it later. After their banquet order and various drinks had arrived Spike tapped his chopstick against his glass and ignored Williams mental eep as all eyes turned to him.

"Just thought that since this is a celebration we should have a toast" He received nods and smiles as the others raised their glasses in agreement. He continued, tilting his glass toward Tara. "To Tara. I don't know of anyone, human or demon that knows her that wouldn't have mourned her passing. And that isn't thankful that it's a potential tragedy we don't have to face. To Tara, the best of us."

"To Tara!" came the unified exclamation as glasses were raised. Tara blushed but her smile beamed as she finally felt a true sense of belonging. Not the special one that had connected her to Willow and Spike but the one that the others sometimes seemed to take for granted and was so hard for outsiders to become a part of. She saw the genuine pleasure the others found in her continued existence and knew that it had one very special cause so as soon as glasses were lowered she raised hers again.

"I…I'd like to make a toast t..to if I c..can?"

"This is your night Tara, you can do anything you want to my dear." Giles had no doubt that he spoke for them all. He also had no doubt who the toast was going to acknowledge.

"T…To Spike. Without h..his courage, his b..bravery I w..wouldn't be here."

"To Spike!" came the cry

Spike couldn't blush but William did and then promptly burst into tears while his demon purred like a kitten. For himself he ducked his head shyly and mumbled a thank you. Not wanting to embarrass either guest of honour any more everyone tucked into the mountain of food.

The chatter was general and wonderfully ordinary. Dawn sometimes got so fed up of every other word being prophecy or demon, or if patrol went particularly badly, goo. Anya, she noticed, seemed a little brighter than she had earlier but she was discussing profits with Giles and money always cheered her up. Dawn often wondered if that was a vengeance demon thing or an Anya thing. She smiled at Willow's adoring looks toward Tara; as though she had been given the greatest gift ever but feared it was going to disappear again, which was true, well the first bit anyway. She took another bite of her crispy duck with plum sauce and then set her gaze on the two most important people in the world. And she was encouraged by what she was seeing. Of course if she had her way she would just lock them in a cupboard together until they saw sense but she knew her sister and that so wouldn't work. Pity though.

Spike expertly coaxed another spicy prawn between his chopsticks and dunked it in the small bowl of chilli sauce. He popped it in his mouth and nearly spat it out again as he watched the Slayer's water chestnut shoot past his plate from the force given it by the girl's own, rather less successful, stick wielding. Spike couldn't help but think that she would starve to death before admitting defeat and picking up a fork.

Buffy turned toward the choking sound from the next chair ready to glare the stupid vampire into submission but the sight of the genuine non sarcastic amusement on the far too pretty face for a monster took the sting out of the sound, that and his chuckle as he indicated the final location of said oriental vegetable….Giles hair. She couldn't help but smile as she covered her mouth with her hand to stifle a response to the infectious vampire laughter….And hey! She thought with shock. Since when did vampires chuckle? Angel never even smiled let alone chuckle. There was something very wrong in that mental image, she decided as she watched her watcher pick the offending foodstuff off his head and carry on as though nothing had occurred - it was a British thing, she had come to learn over the years. She switched back to her previous thought, the wrongness of a smiley chuckly Spike. Something had happened that they weren't being told about she was sure but she trusted Giles and Tara, her jury was still a little out on Willow after the whole yanking out of heaven thing but she was getting there. And the shocks just keep on coming she mused as she realised that she also trusted Spike; at least where her family were concerned. She knew that Dawn had concluded that she wasn't paying attention to the stories of life after Buffy but she had been, she just couldn't bare the feelings of guilt…that while she had been happy and at peace her sister was devastated and in pain. And that of all the people she had trusted to look out for her baby sister the only two that gave their all were the newest recruit, who they hadn't even deigned to accept on her own merits but rather as an attachment to Willow, and an undead creature who did as much if not more, and certainly more than Angel, without a soul than those for whom it should have been second nature. Realising that she was entering territory that threatened to spoil her happy mood, and those were rare enough these days, she concentrated on the rebellious noodles that while content to cling to each other were determined to escape her chopsticks. Her breath hitched as a hand covered hers…a cool, elegant and long fingered hand.

Spike could stand it no longer. It was worse than watching Dru try to persuade Miss Edith to eat her cake. He reached out and gently clasped Buffy's hand. He paused as she turned to him in surprise but was bolstered by her lack of hostility…she would normally have bopped him on the nose for that…or worse if they had been alone. He gently rearranged her fingers around the sticks and moved her digits in the correct manner. He was rewarded with a bright smile and a thank you as food finally made a successful journey to her , in his opinion, perfect mouth. He gave her a little nod which she suspected was the vampire equivalent of a blush and returned to his own meal. His demon was whimpering with joy and he couldn't hear William at all; he suspected that the little wuss had swooned.

Buffy felt the darkness inside her lighten even more at the burning brightness of the pretty vampire's smile.

She gulped with a nervousness that wasn't altogether unpleasant. That was twice tonight that she had thought of the peroxide vampire as pretty. That was so wrong…bad, bad Buffy! She waited for the feeling of self loathing to arrive, like it always did when she thought of the vampire. Well not so much Spike himself as her feelings for Spike, after all Angel had kept reminding her that he was still evil. When the self loathing didn't come she wondered if it was a symptom that something else was wrong with her, because she was getting pretty damned sick and tired of herself just lately. Then she wondered, with a dawning hope if perhaps it was an indication that something was finally right with her. She wondered if she could be having…what was it Giles called it? An epilogue…no, no, an epiphany!

She looked at the people around her. They were laughing and joking, relaxed and happy. Dawn was actually smiling! She didn't do much of that anymore. Nobody at home did. It was all business, with slaying and research and vast amounts of brooding about slaying and research. Was this the key to life? Or rather to actually feeling alive, because while her heart was beating she would bet her fake Gucci that Spike felt more alive with his silent heart than she did with her thumpety thump. Was it this simple? Being with friends and family who knew that you weren't one hundred percent but gently encouraged your happy moments instead of taking advantage of your bad ones….and whoa! Where did that come from. She wasn't being taken advantage of was she? Angel had only ever had her best interests at heart hadn't he? Not wanting to delve too deeply into that abyss at a celebration party she tucked the thought away for later - but she wasn't going to dip her toes back in de-nile by ignoring it. It hadn't done any good so far. It was about time she kept her feet dry and on solid ground. As she shifted her thoughts back to the happy she caught a glimpse of something sparkly. Buffy had an instinct for bright and sparkly but….she didn't know that it was a thing she shared with their vampire (put that 'their' in the box marked to be dealt with later, she noted).

"Spike, why are you wearing an earring?"

"Oh bugger!"

B*T*V*S

The rest of the evening had gone well. For once there were no demon gatecrashers. No earthquakes or sudden portents of doom, just a nice time had by all, once Spike had gotten over the glowing critique of his formal dress and had promised to wear it again sometime. But Giles had the strongest feeling that tonight had been very important. The bond that had once existed between the scoobies had been, at least partially, renewed and the outsiders had been brought into the family. And most encouragingly of all Buffy had laughed. She wasn't the old Buffy and Giles suspected that she never would be but she was at least Buffy again. Older, wiser and sadder but no longer halfway between heaven and earth. Buffy was home.

Just in time to up sticks and fly into a new danger.

While Giles drove Anya home the others accepted Spike's offer of an escorted walk back. Well it was William's idea actually and both Spike and his demon had been surprised at how well received the suggestion was. It seemed that Victorian manners were still worth something in this day and age. Spike pretended not to notice the smirk from Tara, he hadn't thought she knew how to smirk, the minx! She had finally admitted to him as they were collecting their coats that their link had enabled her to sort of hear William and the demon talk. Spike had been surprised because while he thought of them as separate inside his head he didn't really think it possible that they genuinely were. Luckily she could only hear echoes of William because she couldn't understand the vampire demonic language of his demon. It's thoughts would make a docker blush. Spike practically had to gag William at that point because having become ecstatic at being heard by a pretty girl once again he started to spout poetry and he was giving Spike, and the demon, a headache. For some reason Tara had been impressed both with the poetry and with his own ability to deal with such a crowded mind. He suspected that it was going to get even more crowded soon since he had 'heard' some rather romantic thoughts to do with Willow…and they certainly weren't his thoughts. He didn't have the parts for it! They had both decided that they would let nature take it's course until it became a nuisance, and then they would do what any Scooby would do….pass the buck to Giles.

Dawn wished she hadn't wasted so much time listening to Angel with his Buffy needs time alone and Buffy mustn't be exposed to those who won't understand. Huh! Just because he went off and signed up at the furthest monastery when things got tough like he had after Buffy had died or sulked for a hundred years like he had when he'd gotten his soul didn't mean that he knew what was best for a depressed Buffy. Her own suggestion of inviting Spike round to talk things over with since his own ideas didn't seem to be working hadn't gone down well. She wouldn't dare tell Buffy but Angel had frightened her. At one point she had actually thought that he might hit her and Buffy didn't need that on top of everything else. But thank God for Giles. This evening had done more to Buffy-fy Buffy than months of brooding. She only hoped that they could continue the process in London. She squealed in excitement at the thought of her first trip abroad.

Buffy broke off her quiet conversation with Willow to raise an inquisitive eyebrow at Dawn's sudden squeal. She had found over the course of the evening that the last of her animosity toward her oldest friend had vanished. Willow had nearly lost the woman she loved. She had been through enough and Buffy had told her so. She had been moved at the gratitude in her eyes and knew that she had done the right thing. Angel had been wrong…again…when he said that he had seen arrogance in the Wiccan's eyes; it had been guilt, and while Buffy couldn't forgive arrogance she could, and did, easily forgive guilt.

They had almost reached the turning for Revello Drive when Spike brought them all to a halt. It was a testament to their trust in him that they obeyed without question. He cocked his head slightly to one side, his classic listening position, and then frowned.

Buffy scrunched her nose up at Spike's frown. Frowning vampires was not of the good. She and the others followed silently as Spike led them up the nearby fire escape which served the local mini-mart and across the roof to the other side. They could all hear the group of three young men now, and they didn't like what they were hearing.

"They won't know what hit them. They may be all with the demon killing but demons are dumb and we're smarter than anything they've ever faced. By the end of the month we'll be the rulers of Sunnydale." Warren laid his vision out for them once again. With idiots for sidekicks it was necessary to hammer the mission statement home a few times. Well at least Jonathan is on board he thought as the boy he had suddenly elevated from sidekick to right hand man supported his vision without question.

"Yeah, and when we rule all the demon clans will have to bow down and pledge their allegiance to us and pay tithes to their rulers. And we'll have the pick of the hottest chicks as concubines. The Slayer will be begging for mercy" Jonathan had to admit that he cared more about the money and the girls than the power but… whatever kept him on Warren's good side was okay by him.

Andrew Wells looked around nervously. He could have sworn he heard a growl just then, when Warren had said that demons were dumb. He was starting to think that they were the dumb ones for standing around talking about this stuff. And it wasn't turning out anything like he'd imagined. He came to the conclusion that he had made a big mistake. He just couldn't see how to fix it.

"Guys? Are you sure that this is the right thing to do? I mean why do we have to be Darth Vader? Shouldn't we be Han Solo and Obi Wan Kenobi? Sunnydale is a big place…and…and dangerous. The Slayer might appreciate a little help. It can't be easy being Wonder Woman you know" Andrew had the feeling that he was talking to a brick wall…and that he had made another, more fatal, mistake. When Jonathan had told him that they could make a difference in Sunnydale, that they would become somebodies, he had been excited. He wasn't excited anymore. He was afraid. Warren was talking like a Lex Luthor not a Superman.

The small group crouched on the rooftop and listened as the wannabe rulers of Sunnydale conspired. Willow gave Spike a sharp nudge as his demon reacted to the dumb demon comment and Buffy shushed Dawn as she started to giggle at the Wonder Woman analogy. Buffy was pretty sure that she wasn't the only one who felt sorry for the blond boy who thought he was going to be a hero and ended up auditioning for villain.

Suddenly Spike tensed.

"What?" Buffy spoke too low for the bad guys to hear but louder than vamp level so that the others would know that something was up. She needn't have worried. Tara and Willow felt his unease through their still secret bond and Dawn had months of living with the vampire to tell her that he was on alert. An alertness that was great when faced with demons but not so great when your potential date suddenly found something he really had to do…far away.

Spike could smell the change in the atmosphere…literally. But how to explain it with Dawn present?!

""Something's different Slayer." Spike flicked his gaze toward Dawn and, with the accompanying twitch of the head it looked like he had developed a bizarre facial tic.

"Huh!?" Buffy was confused, especially when he repeated the process.

Dawn shook her head in fond exasperation. "It'll be about sex." she whispered matter of factly.

"Dawn!" Spike should have known better than to be subtle.

Dawn smirked as she continued. "He always does that if I'm there when he wants to talk to someone about gruesome demon stuff or sex and those guys don't look gruesome…of course if they start having sex…" She stopped at Spike's low growl and Willow's gasp of surprise. She grinned though when Spike admitted

"She's right though" he waved an elegant hand toward two of the trio who now eyed the third with a predatory eye.

Despite knowing that it had been Spike who had cared for Dawn while she was 'away' it still gave her a shock when her little sister revealed how well she understood the vampire. Spike must have been incredibly open with her Buffy thought before Spike's comment redirected her thoughts to the trio.

"They're going to have sex? That's eeew. I mean not because it's guys, or a threesome or anything…well maybe a little with the threesome,,, but in public!"

Spike noted that despite Buffy's exclamation of disgust both she and the other girls were leaning out for a better view. Women!

"No pet, they're not gonna have an orgy in the middle of the street. It's worse than that" The seriousness in his voice brought their attention back from a still babbling Andrew. "I can smell…um…"

"Oh for Pete's sake Spike I'm fifteen not five!" Dawn hissed.

Spike's William sighed at the youth of today but didn't add his opinion to Spike's as the vampire clarified his observation.

"I can smell arousal on the two bad bad guys. They're gonna kill the little one. It's turning them on."

Buffy remembered how Slaying had made Faith horny and understood.

"We can't let them have him Spike. He's just a mixed up kid. He hasn't actually done anything wrong yet." Buffy's tone was one of pleading for the vampire's cooperation in rescuing the little twit below without realising that he didn't need any persuasion. He had been won over the moment his William had identified with the downtrodden outsider. For a split second he had felt the pain of 19th century humiliation all over again. He didn't, of course, say any of this. With a simple nod he jumped straight down between the two would be killers and their victim. Buffy quickly followed while Willow, Dawn and Tara decided on the mundane route of another ladder.

The two nerds may have been pathetic wankers but Spike had to acknowledge that they were quick to defend themselves. The moment he landed next to the potential victim squirt guns appeared and were pointed straight at him. Spike didn't doubt that the water in the guns owed more to the Pope than the kitchen tap and he braced himself for pain as Buffy landed behind his antagonists, just a step or two too far away to stop the reflexive tightening of trigger fingers.

The pain didn't come and the soggy reason was standing in front of him. The little nerd had stepped in front of him to take the worst of the drenching. Warren and Jonathan, by this time, had felt the presence of the Slayer…it was hard to miss as they were thrown into the side of the building, landing in an ungainly and slightly concussed heap.

Buffy couldn't believe it. All this time on the hell mouth protecting humans from the creatures of the night and now all of a sudden her enemies were Sunnydale High overachievers. And they had tried to take out her vampire?! ….okay, she was really going to have to deal with this possessive attitude….sometime that was not now. For now she had two wannabe big bads to show the error of their ways…

Or not.

"Where'd they go?!" Buffy turned to the other girls who had stopped dead as both of the boys, with a glare at Andrew that promised death, vanished into thin air, quite literally in a puff of smoke. "Willow, did you or Tara…?" Buffy wiggled her fingers to indicate witchy happenings but both girls shook their heads.

"One of them must be a magician" Willow was impressed and a little jealous of the smooth spell casting.

"It was Jonathan."

They all looked to the shivering blond boy who was, in turn gazing in awe, one might almost say adoration at Spike who was himself still trying to come to terms with a human that he didn't know from Adam defending his immortal arse. Okay, he was defending him by stepping in front of a weapon which, at the worst, would give him the sniffles but it was the instinct that counted. In view of the circumstances Buffy and the girls ignored the distinct lack of grrr in Spike's voice as he enquired,

"And just who is Jonathan pet?"

Andrew was in a thrall of his own making as he felt compelled to answer that soft and yet commanding British accented question.

"He was the smaller one, the other guy was our leader, Warren. Jonathan's the one into magics and Warren is into robotics and engineering. He…he said that he had a plan to make a difference in Sunnydale. That people would stop laughing at us by the time we had proved how powerful we were. That they would beg us to belong."

Andrew's voice got softer and softer as he told his little story. He was convinced that they would abandon him to his fate and he was under no illusion that it would be a good one. He had seen his death reflected in Warren's eyes. What he didn't realise was that at some time in their lives, even if that life had been over a century ago, everyone present had been the same sort of outcast; from Tara's family to Willow's wounds from the sharp tongue of Cordelia Chase. From Buffy's 'odd' reputation and Spike's ridicule as a gentle Victorian poet to Dawn's 'keyness' every person present understood at least a part of what made Andrew Wells tick. So, with a quick bout of looks and gestures between themselves a decision was made, much to Andrew's amazement and a proportionate increase in his budding hero worship of the Vampyre who had defended his very life, to take him under the collective Scooby wing. They left the alley with a new responsibility and, if the other two were going to try and follow through with their threats, a potentially important ally.

Ten minutes later they wanted to throttle the, as Spike put it so succinctly when he yelled at him to shut up, 'annoying little wanker'

Andrew practically swooned with delight. Spike was sooo masterful.

Spike didn't need to be a vampire to detect that the kid was developing a crush on him. In truth he was quite flattered but he didn't dare encourage it. He knew what it was to have that sort of love crushed,. Better not to let it start. Distance was the cure.

So with the agreement of the girls he dumped him on Xander.

B*T*V*S

Spike had arrangements to make and letters to send. He knew that he could send emails but the Victorian in him balked at the idea. One did not write to a family that one had never met via something as informal as the internet. Spike gave in to his inner William without much of a fuss. Both he and his demon recognised that the poet was the expert in these circumstances. He would have the letter couriered since time was of the essence but he used his best parchment and fountain pen to compose the missive.

'Knock it off ya ponce! It's a letter not a bloody love note…be having me sharpen a ruddy quill next!' Spike reprimanded his over enthusiastic 'better third' He was glad that he had roughed out his letter on scraps of Dawn's notepaper first otherwise the vast number of scrunched up efforts would have exhausted his supply of vellum…well as near as he could get at Sunnydale Mall.

_My Dearest Cousin,_

_I entrust that you and the family are keeping well. Your last letter was a most welcome light in what have been quite dark times here in Sunnydale. I hope that my reply allayed your fears for my health. Circumstances have vastly improved of late and I have news to impart which I pray that you will approve of._

_After far too many years I will be returning to England, albeit for only a short time and to deal with a potential prophecy, and I wondered if you would care to meet in person?_

_I understand fully that you may wish to keep our association a private matter and I can assure you that I have told no-one of our connection…after all while most families have a skeleton or two in their closet they seldom come complete with flesh on their bones, and a penchant for A negative. I must also warn you that I do not travel alone. This is a team effort and I will be accompanying The Slayer, my Sire (yes him) and some people that I have become quite close to of late - who actually seem to care for me in return. It is quite an intimidating mix and I would not wish to overwhelm you or your family._

_Please let me know of your decision as soon as possible and convey my love and good wishes to your dear wife and children. Make sure they know, in no uncertain terms, that I will not be offended if you wish to remain in the shadows…it is often the safest place to be._

_Your loving Cousin_

_William Tennyson_

B*T*V*S

It had taken almost a week to arrange flights, a passport for everyone except Giles, Doyle, Willow and the two vampires…though Angel did need documentation of a different kind…he was travelling as cargo. Spike offered to save him a copy of the in-flight magazine to read later but for some reason he didn't see the funny side…it might not have helped that Buffy had laughed and Spike wasn't sure whether Angel's glowering was on display because Buffy was laughing once again or because it was someone other than him who made her chuckle. He would have to keep an eye on that… Angel didn't take being shown up well; even with his soul he could be a vindictive git. Luckily Buffy didn't notice; she was too busy trying to organize her packing to accommodate every season, Giles having warned her about the British weather. The Watcher himself had his hands full dealing with the minutiae and the bulk delivery of kittens to the local cattery including the late arrival to the 'honorary scoobies - feline branch' A late addition which left Spike doubting his own sanity for the millionth time since he first crashed onto the hell mouth. He had said an unequivocal no. He had been adamant, forceful even. Yet to no avail. In the end all it took to break the Big Bad was a fearsome collection of pouting females and Doyle's threat to pass the last of his winnings back to Clem who, despite being one of the sweetest demons on earth, had terrible eating habits.

Giles indicated the small Siamese kitten with eyes a very familiar shade of blue. Spike fancied that the other Brit sounded a tad smug as he enquired

"So what are you going to call your kitten Spike? Alfred?"

Spike should have known better than to think he had gotten away with the revelation of his rather famous family name and that the discussion that Giles was so obviously looking forward to was on the near horizon - probably about 10,000 feet up where he couldn't get away.

"Byron, actually. Little fang here takes after his master."

Giles laughed as Spike walked away with all the dignity a vampire could muster…with a proud, mewling kitten perched on his shoulder.

"Huh?" Xander humphed questioningly as he overheard the short conversation. He had managed to ditch Andrew for a few minutes. The kid was bright and had a great taste in movies but it was like being surgically attached to a one man Spike fan club. Questions came at him thick and fast about the life and times of the peroxide pest but despite Xanders attempts to convince the techno geek that fang boy was an evil soulless demon who deserved staking Andrew had stuck by his hero, parrying every Spike related insult with a reason to look differently on his enemy. It was driving him insane….and even worse, some of it made sense. And he so didn't want it to make sense.

"I beg your pardon Xander?" Giles had enough experience of American youth to recognize the inarticulate sound as an actual question but he'd be buggered if he would reply to anything that did not even have the dignity of being an actual word.

"What's the what with the name? I don't get it."

"And why am I not surprised." Giles channelled his inner librarian rather than his inner demon summoner and took a breath before adding to Xander's education.

"Byron was a famous English poet. He had quite a reputation and was often spoke of as being 'Mad, bad and dangerous to know."

"Well who'd a thunk the bleached menace would have something in common with a poet!" Xander snickered as Giles resisted the urge to smile at the oblivious boy's proximity to the truth. Then Xander spotted Andrew bearing down on him with that gleam of obsession and he was off like a jackrabbit. Giles was beginning to see that Andrew had his uses. He certainly hoped that the boy wouldn't be a liability on their trip. He wasn't the most fearless of souls though his attempt to defend Spike showed promise. And his computer knowledge would help free up Willow to concentrate on her magic. In the quiet lull Giles made a few notes of questions to ask William about his family connections. He might have that chat while they were mid- Atlantic. Nothing like a captive audience.

Unfortunately Giles didn't get to have his discussion with William as planned, for, after over one hundred and thirty years of 'living' Spike discovered something about himself that he hadn't known before.

He was terrified of flying.

TBC

A/N Well almost there. I at least got them on the plane this time. Next chapter Spike gets a shock at the airport and Angel has a bad day.


	7. Chapter 7

Family Ties chapter 7

A/N Hello, it's good to be back. Sorry for the delay but I just couldn't juggle a 4000 word research project and my fics so they all had to go on hold. This chapter is a little shorter than normal because I'm playing catch up on all my fics but it's still a fair length so I hope you enjoy. Also, I have included what I hope will be seen as a light hearted scene at the airport involving security. It was only on completion that I realised the significance of the date next week. I mean no disrespect and like many my thoughts are with the people of America and especially New York at this time.

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Wesley watched with growing concern as his older, and supposedly wiser, fellow watcher fussed over the quietly panicking blond vampire. Nothing that he had been told about the night spent saving Tara, and he suspected that he hadn't been told anywhere near everything which was an insult to his status as second in command to Angel…well technically third if you included Buffy but since she hadn't been functioning at optimum levels of late she was more of a burden than an asset….He dragged his thoughts away from the disturbing little idea growing in his mind that that was exactly what Angel wanted her to be and brought himself back to the far more comfortable arena of his disapproval of Giles and his closeness to the soulless vampire; anyone would think that the creature was his long lost son by the way he was fussing. As he watched the ludicrous sight of a creature that didn't even need to breathe hyperventilating he wished that he had one of those army tazers in his possession…that would shut him up.

"Please Spike, you need to stop breathing. Everything is fine; there's no danger…Spike?….Spike I never thought I would hear myself saying this but please remember that you are a vampire and stop breathing!"

Spike felt like the biggest fool on the planet. He really should have foreseen this. As much as HE enjoyed new experiences his other two elements had sometimes had problems in adjusting. Well, if Angel, the great poof, could pin the blame for his failings on his 'other' half then so could he. There had been the humiliating reaction of William to the wonder that was the motor car, and they would never ever mention his big bad demon's reaction to LSD…suffice to say that it hadn't been William who had cried over the beauty of a daisy for two hours before trying to drain it's sap in a sudden and extremely short lived conversion to vegetarianism.

It hadn't helped. Spike had hoped to embarrass his other parts into calming down but the horrible truth was that it was he, Spike, who had subconsciously decided that if he were meant to fly he would be named Dracula and would be able to turn into a flying mouse. He had to admit, though, that his respect for the great cloaked twit had gone up a little…flying was not for wimps. Not that he was in any way wimpish himself…just cautious, yeah that was it. He was the only one with the common sense to not want to be 10,000 feet up in the….Oh God!

"William please calm down!" Giles was getting alarmed; after a moment when he thought that the afflicted vampire was getting better he had suddenly taken a downward turn and he felt at a loss as to what to do…although shoving Xander out of the nearest door sans parachute was a definite option right now. If he heard one more snigger or petty comment directed at his charge the immature child would discover just what the nickname Ripper stood for…and it wasn't his childhood impatience at unwrapping his Christmas presents!

Buffy watched with fascination as her Watcher treated Spike like a frightened colt. Had she been so out of it lately that she had slipped into another dimension without realising it? Her gaze scanned round her friends and other than the expected smug look on Xander's face…and when had that stopped looking so comical and begun looking quite so vindictive?…and the constipated expression on Wesley's features…nothing new there then! Nobody seemed to be having any problems with treating the vampire with respect. That was a big change in Scoobie world!

She had denied her growing feelings for the blond because of how it would affect her friends and to avoid the condemnation of Giles, her father in all but DNA. Angel had warned her that her developing feelings for Spike would alienate them all and leave her completely alone…her greatest fear since her return. Could Angel have been wrong? He had also told her that without a soul his offspring couldn't genuinely care for her or love her as he had claimed but she had heard what he had done for Tara and seen how he still cared for Dawn despite being pushed away. She bit her lip as she realised that the unfathomable look in his ocean blue eyes on those occasions hadn't been, as she had assumed, obsession but love, and sorrow at his alienation. Her eyes narrowed slightly as the thoughts crossed her mind, a mind which seemed to be seeing things a whole lot clearer of late, that Angel might have known all along that while she had been on her own little mental vacation those around her had changed, had grown; she was seeing that maybe even with a soul Angel was lacking in humanity or conversely that even without Spike was still in possession of his human qualities.

And she, herself, hadn't really matured at all had she? Like Xander she chose to take the easy route and live by the Egyptian river. Though it had been a little different for her, she supposed. She hadn't been allowed to grow…to think for herself or be herself, if she could ever figure out who that was. Could it be that who she really was, the woman her innermost core cried out to be, was not someone that fit in with Angel's idea of the perfect Buffy? Angel and her would be having a little talk later, well after they'd unpacked him, she thought wickedly.

Buffy's attention, like the others, was suddenly commanded by the two wiccas who had gestured to Giles and Anya who had been seated either side of the embarrassed vampire that they wanted to swap. Anya and Giles rapidly complied and Tara and Willow took their seats. The moment his two girls touched him, each taking a hand, he calmed.

Buffy would never admit it, even to herself…especially to herself… but she was a little jealous at the instant connection that the three made. Her jealousy turned rapidly to shock as, along with the other open mouthed members of the party they watched a soft silver glow surround the trio.

Andrew practically drooled at the sight of his silvery knight while Dawn kept Xander from interfering by the power of a glare that was the equal of her sister's any day - well that and Anya's whispered list of non-fatal but humiliating diseases she could have her friend Halfrek wish on him if he moved so much as his pinkie.

Giles sighed and ran his hand through hair that was probably turning greyer as he sat in his seat. Explaining Spike's accidental vamp out earlier to a stunned flight attendant had taken all his charm and a rather natty line in pseudo scientific gibberish involving light refraction and optical illusions. He didn't need to be a clairvoyant to see some serious sedation involved in their return journey.

Spike felt like he was floating, his senses were dulled and his mind, for once, was not a frenetic jumble of thoughts and ideas. It was rather like being asleep while being awake…and overlying everything was the sweet yet subtle scent of roses. If he could be bothered to care he might wonder why everyone around him was staring but even shy William was too busy basking in the warmth of the girl's affection and the calm of the Goddess to be self conscious. Maybe this flying lark wasn't so bad after all!

Doyle watched with fascination and slugged back another miniature bottle of whiskey.

B*T*V*S

"Mr Giles…Mr Rupert Giles…Would Mr Giles please report to the security desk."

The landing had been smooth, thank God, and they had made it through customs without losing anyone…not even Andrew, despite Xander's fervent hopes, when the call came over the speaker system. Everyone waited nervously as Giles returned to the customs desk where a man in a uniform greeted him. Several minutes later they saw Giles shake the man's hand and solemnly walk back to them. As he neared they could see that his features were held in an expressionless mask. Something had obviously affected him greatly.

"Giles?" Buffy gently touched his arm in support as she made the enquiry that was on all of their lips, "What's wrong?"

Giles didn't answer, he couldn't let his feelings show while they were still within sight of the customs official. Instead he guided them all to a relatively quiet spot around the corner. Once there he let the façade slip.

"Giles!?"

"G-Man!"

"Rupes? What the bleedin' hell's goin' on?"

They had expected to have to make a run for it… for Spike's fake documentation to have been discovered…in fact they had expected anything but what they were witnessing, and Buffy, Xander and Spike's exclamations weren't the only ones tinged with disbelief at Giles…

Laughter!

It took the normally serious Watcher several moments to calm down, knowing that as soon as he revealed the details of his meeting the groups reaction would probably set him off again.

"I…I do apologise. Please be assured that there is no danger…merely a minor inconvenience" At that he spluttered into another short laughing fit that brought fresh tears to his eyes. He duly removed his glasses and used the time polishing the spatters of salty teardrops from them to regain his composure.

"Ahem…it would seem that in today's world of threats to national security and highly specialized smuggling operations all potential threats have to be thoroughly investigated…"

"Oh please tell me you're saying what I think you're saying!?" Spike was practically bouncing on the balls of his feet as he jumped ahead of the Watcher. Wesley too got the idea immediately but his reaction was less jocular.

"You can't mean to say that you would allow them to…"

"Of course I did. The implications if I were to be less than cooperative could be quite troublesome."

Gile's reply almost achieved the impartial professionalism that he was hoping to portray but the Ripperesque gleam in his eyes and the determined effort not to burst out laughing which failed dismally as Spike chuckled with unabashed mirth while Buffy snorted inelegantly and the two Wicca's clamped hands over their mouths in amused shock gave the lie to his efforts. Those who were still in the dark were soon enlightened and Wesley found himself in a disapproving minority of one.

"Yes, well, I could hardly refuse them their request to check the contents of the coffin without it seeming suspicious, after all we didn't have him listed as being of any faith where it would be a problem. And if I expressed concern at even the merest hint of the possibility that my dearly beloved cousin's remains might have been tampered with for nefarious purposes and insisted that they make the search of both the coffin and the…um..b…body as thorough as possible it only went to prove my standing as an honest citizen."

Andrew's chuckle was uncertain and triggered by the general response, after all he didn't reallyknow the elder vampire; but if Spike hated him then he obviously deserved to be hated, and somehow what little he had seen of him reminded him of Warren which was so not of the good.

"He's not going to be happy" declared a petulant Wesley who knew that he would be the one to bear the brunt of the inevitable brooding and tantrums.

The chuckling died down as the group progressed through the crowds towards the entrance, Dawn and Andrew already acting like the excited teenage tourists that they were at the sight of a real British 'Bobby' as Spike had told them the cops were called here. As they entered the area filled with friends and relatives awaiting loved ones arrivals Giles kept a look out for Council representatives. They hadn't given Travers their exact arrival details but the slimy man had his ways of finding things out. His wandering eye was brought back to his companions as an awed yet nervous sounding Spike stopped dead in his tracks.

"Bloody 'ell."

The tone of his voice gained the attention of all his fellow travellers and they followed his gaze to see a well dressed man and elegantly clothed woman in their early forties standing smiling widely and holding a sign that read 'WELCOME HOME WILLIAM'

"Giles, why are the Council welcoming William instead of you?" Buffy's tone was not, Spike noticed with some surprise, angry but genuinely puzzled and curious.

Willow and Tara could feel their brother's shock but since only Tara could in any way read his thoughts and not when they were in such turmoil as they were now neither knew why the attractive couple inspired such feelings.

Wesley frowned and wondered if Angel knew the suspicious strangers and if they weren't Council then why were they not welcoming the senior vampire…in fact why on earth were humans welcoming vampires at all. Oh this was a fine start to proceedings!

Spike stepped forward slowly as the couple moved toward him, lowering the hand drawn sign crafted in multi coloured fibre tip pens by the hands of others much younger and reaching out towards him instead.

Just as the two men were about to clasp hands a dark shape moved in between them and a pair of long arms widened to form a barrier.

The couple frowned at the intervention.

Spike growled very quietly, only heard by the Slayer's extra sensitive ears.

Xander looked at the couple as though they were either total innocents or completely insane and figured that since they were British they were probably both. He lowered his arms and gestured back toward the embarrassed vampire as he spoke.

"Whoah folks! I don't know what you think you're doing but whoever you think this is he isn't … at least not anymore. So back away because he's a dangerous monster and he'll hurt you if you give him the chance." Mistaking the look of outrage on the woman's face for one of fear he hastened to reassure the 'civilian'.

"It's oklay though ma'am. He's been neutered and we've got the best in the business here to protect you from him if he should try anything."

By now Spike had recovered his equilibrium and had exchanged an amused glance with his cousin.

"Pillock's channelling his inner Riley again" he muttered to no-one in particular but was delighted to hear Buffy's tinkling laugh. His humiliation had been worth it if it made her laugh. She hadn't been doing enough of that as of late. He might have come to terms with the death of his hopes of having her return his love but it wasn't as though he could turn his own feelings off and on like a tap. That was Angelus's territory.

Giles hadn't had the time to question his young friend on his family name but if he was connected to THE Tennyson family then it didn't surprise him that there might be descendants living. After all the great poet himself had been one of eight children and even the most bloodthirsty vampire couldn't have possibly eliminated them all after his turning as was vampire tradition. It did however astonish him that they would know of the vampire's existence and would welcome him with open arms. He wondered for a moment whether they knew exactly what he was or whether they believed him to be a member of the current generation but one look at their faces, filled with wonder and their lack of surprise at Xander's talk of monsters told him differently. He stepped forward and grabbed the collar of Xander's jacket, pulling him backwards unceremoniously as he apologised to the patient couple.

"So sorry but he's a bit of an idiot I'm afraid."

Spike managed not to snigger at that as he finally got to meet the people he had watched over from afar through the generations, the descendants of his older brother Alginon.

His family.

His greatest triumph over his Grandsire.

David Alfred William Tennyson looked with awe on the face of his ancestor, technically his great great great uncle he supposed but cousin was the term they all used to save confusion. If it weren't for the peroxide hair he would be the spitting image of both his own father and his own son. He had been a legend to each generation and now he was here in the flesh!

A handshake no longer seemed sufficient which was why William Alfred James Tennyson found himself in a hug that would have put the Slayer to shame with it's force.

All through his letter writing over the years a little part of him wondered if he was merely being tolerated. All through the plane trip, well when he wasn't panicking like a girl, he had wondered if he would truly be welcome.

Now he knew.

He was home. And he was wanted. Finally after over one hundred years there were people who truly wanted him! It was overwhelming.

By silent agreement both Spike and the demon backed away slightly to let William have his moment. Even the rest of the group quietened at the sight of the genuinely emotional meeting. Wesley realised that he probably knew more than most what that look of disbelief and joy on the vampire's face meant. His own life had been one of yearning for acceptance from family and learning to live with the constant disappointment of rejection. Perhaps Giles had a good reason for treating the vampire like a man the younger Watcher mused as he passed a travel tissue to a sniffling Dawn, then another to each of the wiccas. One look at the blubbering wreck that was Andrew had him handing over the rest of the pack with a much put upon sigh.

B*T*V*S

Introductions had been made and David and his wife Katherine led the troupe out to their vehicles. They exchanged bemused and slightly incredulous looks, it wasn't every day that two perfectly normal humans played host to vampires, demons, half demons, slayers and glowy keys after all. Katherine smiled softly. She had always suspected that William wouldn't do anything by half. As she herded her half of the Californian contingent into her people carrier she felt a twinge of sympathy for the young man who had stepped between them and their William. It had been quite brave really, if one were to view it from the boy's perspective but he did seem awfully insecure and not a little prejudiced which was a surprise considering the wide mix of beings he travelled with. There was obviously more to his story and she was determined to unravel the mystery. Their Wil needed all the support he could get, not condemnation and distrust.

Doyle watched quietly as he had the entire trip. He knew from his vision that there would be rough times ahead and that Spike and Buffy would need them all to be on-side to win the fight. He was glad that the group had been largely supportive but he had a strange foreboding that there was danger ahead…danger that came from within, from family…but not human family. He would have to warn Giles to keep a very close eye on Angel, he just didn't know why.

The house they all arrived at was a magnificent example of mid-Victorian architecture and told the group that their hosts were quite wealthy. Giles had protested at imposing on the couple and their family, reminding them that they had hotel rooms booked but he knew deep down that traditional English hospitality would be offended if he didn't take them up on their offer of accommodation. So it was then that rooms were quickly allocated and Spike and the others were encouraged to settle in and relax before the children returned from school. It seemed that once young William and his older sister Charlotte returned nobody would get any peace. Buffy laughed at the normality of family life but it was tinged with a bittersweet taste as she privately mourned what she had herself lost when her Mom had died.

Although the Trinity were loath to be separated they really couldn't justify sharing a room so Spike willingly teamed up with Giles while Tara and Willow shared the room next door. Buffy and Dawn found themselves opposite and happily welcomed the last female, Anya, who had visions of being expected to share with one of the men…without the opportunity of orgasms, to share the massive king sized four poster bed. Doyle, seeing who was left, grabbed his luggage and dove into Wesley's room leaving a slump shouldered Xander to the over excited babbling that was Andrew.

Xander was beginning to suspect that Karma was a bitch.

But he cheered up a little at the thought that upon Spike's insistence Angel would not be issued a permanent invite to the beautiful and surprisingly comfortably decorated house. A house that the vampire had admitted had once been his childhood home. That Spike distrusted his Grandsire despite the anchored soul and put the safety of his living family first sent him up in Xander's estimation. He didn't want it to…but to his consternation it did anyway.

Dawn fought the urge to explore the house her father/brother had been raised in. He had gone from knight in shining armour to Prince of a fairytale castle, well mansion; even Buffy seemed impressed and that took a lot of doing these days.

Buffy watched as her little sister prattled on about Spike and how cute he must have been as a child. She felt a sudden stab of guilt that she had kept her away from the man she adored like a brother. The man, not monster, who had been her sister's only stable influence while she was gone. Well no matter what Angel had to say she wouldn't be making that mistake again.

Wesley looked out of the window at the heavily overcast sky. If it had been sunny they wouldn't expect to see Angel until much later but as it was he would probably arrive any time now. Indeed, as he watched a taxi pulled up outside the house…and he would be having words with his boss about letting him think that William The Bloody had been an uncouth common criminal… the vampire himself stormed forth and he was obviously in a bad mood. Wesley sighed having already regretted a million times the necessity of sending him the text redirecting him to this place and prepared to face the music…after warning Willow to have a disinvite spell ready for when he left.

Angel was beside himself with fury! Not for the first time when dealing with these people he wished (though not out loud for obvious demonically related reasons) that he didn't have the pesky soul holding him back from exacting due punishment.

David stood by the door ready to 'welcome' his new and very temporary guest. He was glad that the kids weren't home; he would hate to have to introduce them to the being who tormented and tortured his cousin. Hopefully he would be gone before they returned, at least until after his twelve and nine year olds were in bed. He left Mr Giles to open the door, just in case the vampire's temper got the best of him. He spotted William in the shadows by the stairs. He knew that he was nervous; Spike had spent several lifetimes protecting them and the house from his vampiric family and it must seem like a sort of failure to let him in on the secret now.

The doorbell chimed and Giles opened the door with a flourish.

"I suppose you thought that was funny you bastard! Where the hell is this place and why aren't we in the hotel? I'm in charge here in case you've forgotten. Do you realise what those customs men did to me?!" Angel's tirade ended in a squeak as he remembered his experience of 'a thorough search' Caught up in his anger he didn't notice the gathering crowd of both familiar and unfamiliar faces. He especially didn't notice an annoyed and very unimpressed Slayer agitatedly tapping her dainty booted foot.

The representative from the Council of Watchers hailed a taxi as he puzzled over the unexpected interception of his party. He had been fully briefed about his mission and the target pick-ups but he hadn't recognized the strange man and woman. It was something that Quentin would want to know about, he was sure of that. And luckily he had obtained a licence plate so tracking them down should be easy. But he didn't like variables. The Council didn't do well with variables…they might have to be eliminated.

TBC

Hope you enjoyed. Next time we get down to business, play tourist…Slayer style, and Buffy and Spike finally begin to talk, much to Angel's annoyance**.**


	8. Chapter 8

FAMILY TIES Chapter 8

Disclaimer: When I was little I wrote a story about a vampire but unlike him these characters are owned by other people including the legend that is Whedon…so please don't sue.

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As everyone stared with varying degrees of amusement and exasperation at the tall, dark haired, and thoroughly annoyed vampire he, too, began to take notice of those around him.

"Who are you and what are you doing here?" he asked a strangely familiar man who he could swear he had never met before yet…he sniffed the man's scent, trying to place him only to be met with several 'eewws' from the younger contingent. He couldn't understand what was so wrong in using his senses. His annoyance of a grandchilde did it all the time.

"Yeah but he doesn't sound like an industrial drain cleaner" Doyle's comment made Angel realise that he had spoken out loud but they still hadn't answered his questions, and that was beginning to be a habit that he wasn't going to tolerate.

"Will somebody answer my questions? Who are these people and why are humans here in the first place?"

David stepped forward, sending a reassuring smile William's way as he automatically made to step in between his cousin and his grandsire. Spike stilled but his body remained ready to spring; he noticed with satisfaction that both Buffy and Giles were also on alert. He grinned as Angel spotted the potential danger and relaxed his stance a little. His voice was as haughty and commanding as ever though. Not that it impressed David. As a university lecturer and former naval officer he was used to dealing with all sorts of types and jumped up little know-it-all vampires were no different.

"I am the person inviting you to enter my house Angel, and I am the person who can quite easily have you thrown out again if you cause any trouble."

Giles smirked at the matter of fact tone that somehow despite it's politeness managed to make the elder vampire cringe like a scolded schoolboy. However as much as he enjoyed seeing Angel brought down a peg or two they would get him out of their hair all the sooner if they got the business of the day out of the way. He for one wanted to hear more about William's extraordinary relationship with his family. To have kept the secret from his vampiric relations for over a hundred years was quite the achievement; especially for a vampire who normally had the attention span of a goldfish. That was family loyalty of the highest order. And the family's own loyalty to a creature that most would not believe in and if they did would abhor was no less extraordinary.

"If I may make the introductions?"

"Thank you Rupert, that would be most kind." Katherine's warm thanks made the Watcher blush as he turned back to an impatient vampire.

"Angel, may I present your hosts David and Katherine Tennyson. David, Katherine this is William's grandsire, Angel, formerly Angelus, formerly Liam O'Shaughnessy."

Neither human was stupid enough to approach the glowering vampire too closely but they each gave him an acknowledging nod of the head. Spike stepped forward to stand at his cousin's side, his face uncharacteristically serious as he waited for the penny to drop.

Wesley and the others watched as Angel's face went through a slew of expressions, from puzzlement to realization, to what they suspected was anger but rather resembled constipation and finally back to puzzlement again.

Wesley had hoped that Angel would be pleased that Spike had managed to keep his family safe from the Scourge and felt a disappointed tug at his soul when he saw the anger. He glanced again at David, who looked so much like William must have when human and it finally hit home to him that if Spike had been the vampire that he had always believed him to be and that Angel had confirmed him to be then neither David or the two adorable children that he had seen the framed photos of dotted proudly around the house would exist today. Of all the terrible things that Spike had done in his vampire state he had also done at least one incredibly brave and noble thing. Wesley had always looked up to his boss as an example of the soul's triumph over base human nature but his actions of late when set against his grandchilde's sacrifices were giving him grave cause for doubt over where his loyalties should lie. One thing was for sure, preserving the lives of your family was no reason to scowl as Angel was doing right now.

Just as Spike was about to explode with tension and as Angel stepped forward looking like he could happily rip his offspring's head off Tara stumbled and put her hand to her brow. Immediately she was surrounded by a concerned crowd. Katherine took charge and like sheep the others meekly followed her to the comfortable lounge where Tara sank thankfully onto a plushly cushioned sofa. She smiled gratefully at the older woman who, not being fooled for a moment, gave her a conspiratorial wink and a squeeze of the hand. They both knew that if someone hadn't broken the tension things might have gotten nasty; there was far too much testosterone around for anything less. Katherine was pleased that Tara had taken the initiative but she had also noticed that the shy and fey girl was genuinely exhausted. She hadn't gotten the full details of the incident that had nearly taken her life or their William's part in saving her but she undoubtedly needed some TLC. By the look of them they all did. They were heroes who had suffered much hardship and tragedy and they certainly deserved more than that idiot of a vampire was offering. Calls himself Angel, she thought with derision, A devil would be more accurate. Pushing aside her feelings she decided that the British answer to all ills was called for - a nice cup of tea.

While Katherine excused herself to the kitchen the others took their places around the living room. Angel scowled as Buffy hurriedly squeezed herself between Dawn and Giles on one of the couches leaving him to drag up a hard backed chair which he duly placed as close to 'his' Buffy as possible. He endured the general smalltalk while refreshments were prepared but the daggers he kept glaring at Spike and the worried, overly saccharine looks directed at Buffy told them both that there would be some serious conversations later. Buffy and Spike exchanged a glance and the twin smirks and eye rolls just made Angel's brow furrow all the more.

"Xander?"

"What now Andrew!?" Immediately Xander regretted his sharp tone and sent the younger boy an apologetic smile. As annoying as the little brat was Xander couldn't help but be reminded of himself just a few years before. He knew how it had felt to be the geeky, nerdy normal one. Hell, he still knew how it felt! But at least he'd learned pretty quick that all vampires were evil and not to hero worship them like the little idiot was doing with Spike …Spike of all people, well not people - not anymore. Before his brain twisted itself into a knot…nothing new there he thought, he turned his full attention on his new charge. And it was at that point the realised that both Spike and Buffy had actually given him his own responsibility. He smiled at the compliment forgetting that it was from his enemy and his smile at the kid widened. He may be a little idiot but he was HIS real life responsibility.

Andrew perked up at Xander's smile. He knew that he'd been pushed onto them and that he wasn't really much use unless computers were needed but all his life he had been a nuisance to somebody and for someone really cool like Xander to take the time to talk to him was more than he had ever had before. He asked his question quickly, in a hushed tone, before his emotions got the better of him once again.

"Xander, is it so unusual for families of a Vampyre turned to survive? Why did Master Spike not tell his friends?"

Xander managed to keep a straight face at the kid's over dramatic language but had to admit that it was something he had been wondering about himself. Not so much whether a vampire was traditionally expected to kill their human families, he knew that they were but more why Spike hadn't. It was hardly the act of a creature labelled as part of the Scourge of Europe. Luckily before he had to admit his ignorance to Andrew Katherine arrived with the tea, which she had made about as traditional as she could with little cucumber sandwiches ( crusts cut off of course), scones with clotted cream and strawberry jam, tea and coffee in their respective silver pots alongside the best Spode china cups and saucers and a cake stand filled with small delicacies which Buffy could swear made her gain several pounds just by looking.

As everybody politely helped themselves to the refreshments she presented the two vampires with china mugs of warmed blood which Angel accepted gratefully since he had never developed a liking for human foodstuffs. Spike took the proffered mug with a look of awe and a glistening of his eyes. It was one thing to acknowledge that you had a vamp in the family….but to actively offer blood, which he knew was never a comfortable thing to do for a human was almost overwhelming - rather like the past week as a whole really. He drank the liquid down quickly to avoid upsetting anyone and then reached for a strawberry filled scone….Now he knew he was back in blighty!

Xander couldn't help a little chuckle at the look of ecstasy on Spike's face as he bit into the scone. He really was the oddest vampyr…dammit! Vampire, he reminded himself. Realising that he hadn't answered Andrew's question he turned back to the younger boy…who had cream all over his upper lip which made him check his own, which in turn made everyone self consciously do the same. Even Angel, the twit, checked and he was on a strictly red diet!

"I have to admit, Andrew, that I don't really know. I mean I know that it's traditional but…."

"What's traditional?" asked Willow who had been keeping a wary eye on Tara, not willing to totally believe that her sudden attack of the vapours was a ruse - despite the evidence offered by the recovered girl's demolition of her third cucumber sandwich. She couldn't resist the chance to answer a question that someone didn't know though…you obviously can't take the nerd out of the witch, she admitted to herself.

Neither Xander nor Andrew wanted to upset Spike, and that realization alone was enough to upset Xander - but acute vampire hearing had picked up on the boy's original question and Angel was quick to put it to his grandchilde. Not only would it embarrass the brat but he would rather like to know the answer himself. His fledgling offspring had assured him that his mother was his only family and Dru and Darla had both confirmed her death, which he had presumed was by exsanguination.

"I…I don't really think that that's a good topic for present company" he replied with a look of guilt and what the others instantly recognized as concern for David and Katherine but which Angel read as fear, a fear which he aimed to capitalize on.

"What's wrong William? Don't want your family to remember what a monster you really are?"

Buffy and Giles glared at the older vampire while everyone else shuffled uncomfortably in their seats. Andrew was mortified at the atmosphere his innocent question had caused.

"I…I'm s…sorry, I shouldn't…." he began but David, with a gentle smile at his cousin and a glare at Angel interrupted the boy.

"It's quite alright Andrew. It was a valid question and Spike" he waited until the vampire made eye contact before giving the reassurance he felt was needed. "We are proud of what you did. "

Spike jumped up in agitation only to sit right back down again as his knees went wobbly all of a sudden. Once again the two Wiccas were instantly on either side of him and the silver glow surrounded them all. David and Katherine looked on in awe.

"What the hell is that?!"

They all remembered that Angel had been separated from them when they were on the plane and Wesley filled him in while David handed his cousin a large tumbler of brandy.

"Tell them William."

Spike raised his eyes up at the man who looked so like his brother. He saw no trace of the condemnation he felt he deserved.

"But I killed her!" Perhaps he had never understood the history. How else could he explain the compassion in those kind eyes.

"Killed who sweetie?" Tara's natural healer instincts told her that her 'brother' needed to unburden himself and receive some sort of absolution. She could 'feel' his pain as if it were her own and it felt horribly familiar. It reminded her of the grief she had felt when her mother died and her father had blamed her and her unnatural ways. Unfortunately before she could coax the story gently from a nervous Spike Angel decided to stir things up again.

"He killed his mother. Killed her and turned her." Angel just about resisted the instinct to smirk at the gasps of shock that went round the room. He looked to Buffy to see her disgust at his grandchilde's unforgivable sin and this time couldn't hold back the smile as she stalked across the plush carpet to stop him as he lurched to his feet in a new attempt to flee. The smile was soon, however, swept off his face

Spike couldn't stay…he just couldn't face these people in the light of their knowledge of his greatest crime. He gently removed Tara's comforting hand from his arm and stood, determined to leave…he should never have come in the first place. The dead should stay that way….

His devastated thoughts were interrupted by the pure sweet smell of vanilla and citrus…Buffy. Without even looking up he made to move around her but the slight pressure of a small but powerful hand stayed his action.

"Tell us William."

His head shot up at the use of his given name. It was the one she used when she was thinking of him as a man and not a monster. But how could she….he was a monster.

"Please?" Buffy was incensed at Angel's interference. It had taken her a long time and a lot of denial to work out that neither vampire was exactly how her teenage imagination had painted them, but one thing she had always held to be true was that, because of his soul, Angel was good. That his intentions were always pure even if his actions sometimes didn't reflect it. But she also knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that Spike had loved his human family even beyond death. They wouldn't be here now if he hadn't. He had risked the wrath of Angelus to protect them and if he loved those he had never met so much then how much more must he have loved his mom. Hell, she had seen it every time he smiled at her own mom, and how upset he had been when she had died. How dare Angel purposely belittle that love!

That realisation, that Spike could love, had hit her the moment he had met Katherine and David at the airport and it had rocked her foundation of denial. But she put aside the connection of his love for his family and his professed love for her for now. This was hardly the time to make it all about Buffy, she acknowledged with a new maturity…perhaps there were some benefits in dying she mused as she gently pushed Spike back into his seat and the protection of his 'sisters.'

Looking around him Spike could see that he had a rapt audience. Most were wearing supportive or neutral expressions, even Xander had kept his mouth shut which was a minor wonder; but Angel's dark smirk told him that his grandsire expected his imminent dusty end. He took a great gulp of unneeded air and told his little tale while he felt his demon comforting William who had never been at ease with this memory.

"Angel's telling the truth in a way; I did kill my mum, but that wasn't my plan." He spotted Xander opening his mouth to speak but a swift elbow from Andrew quickly dissuaded him. Looked like the whelplet had some sense after all! "Thing that you have to remember was that we're talking about the nineteenth century here. Most everything you folks take for granted today didn't exist back then" Spike didn't notice how his accent had slipped back into what the scoobies would call Giles mode and that that alone, even if they hadn't been fascinated with his tale, would have had them riveted. Katherine noted that he sounded like her David did when he was lecturing his history students.

Spike took a nervous sip of his brandy before continuing, his discomfiture increasing as Angel's smirk widened.

"And some of the things that are rare today were common then. Things like certain diseases. Disease may have been more prevalent among the lower classes but death played no favourites and whether rich or poor sometimes whole families ended up being buried ten deep in the same grave."

The rapt audience winced at the mental picture. They had all learned similar statistics in school but to realise that William had lived through such things was somehow so much worse than dry facts and figures. They knew by his tone that something bad was coming and Angel frowned at the respectful silence. They should be making massive jumps to dusty conclusions by now. When Buffy….HIS Buffy!….reached out and gently squeezed Spike's arm in sympathy it was all he could do not to vamp out.

"My Dad and one of my sisters had been taken the previous winter by an influenza epidemic" he nodded his acceptance of condolences with a sense of surprise and warmth. "When my mum started coughing we feared it was going to take her too but then we learned that it was much worse. An even greater likelihood of death and a slower more painful process…."

"Consumption!" Giles apologised for his interruption but he could see that Spike was too caught up in the memory to be offended.

"What's consumption?" Xander was puzzled by just about everything at this point including his own feelings but at least that was a question that someone could answer.

Spike shook himself free of the moment he and his brother had been told of the diagnosis and answered the whelp's query.

"It's what you call Tuberculosis…TB. Curable now in most cases but back then it took the weakest and the strongest, the richest and the poorest in equal measure. And my mum had never had a strong constitution…..And then I met Drusilla and it seemed like all my prayers were answered.""You turned her to save her!?" Willow felt tears flow and knew that she wasn't the only one.

He smiled sadly. "That was the plan. I was only a few days turned myself and I should have wanted to drain my whole family and the servants but although I felt the desire to feed for some reason I never did get that violent murderous bloodlust…I had to have that beaten into me."Angel ducked his head at the disgusted looks that came his way. This was not going as he had thought. They should get on with the business at hand. His opportunity to interrupt and get them off the subject he had forced them onto didn't come, however, as Spike continued.

"One thing I did feel when I awoke from my turning was strong. In fact I had never felt better. Not surprising since I had developed the first signs of the disease myself, though I hadn't wanted to burden mother with the added worry. I stupidly thought that if I had kept some of my humanity and added immortality to it then I could do the same for her…."

"You hadn't met enough vampires to see how different you were had you?" Giles kept his tone as gentle as possible but they could still detect his watcherly fascination peeking through.

"No, and it cost me dearly. When mother awoke she was a true demon, like Angelus and Darla. I couldn't bear the things it said; the suggestions it made so I did the only thing I could and staked it before it could take an innocent life. Dru thought I was playing a cruel game and it was then that I learned what was expected of me so I sought to protect the rest of my family. That's it really."

Spike didn't dare look into the faces of the people he had come to consider his extended family, he just knew that they would have the same expression as the whelp normally did. The only opinion he couldn't help but know was Tara's because it was positively thrumming down their connection. But then when had his good witch ever hated anyone. It wasn't in her.

"Thank you."

That did make him look up. David was standing in front of him with an elderly woman who he, even with his enhanced hearing, hadn't heard arrive. His eyes grew as big as saucers and the breath caught in his throat. He knew that it wasn't his mum because he'd seen her dust but the resemblance was uncanny! It could only be one person.

"Lady Amelia!"

His shock at meeting his oldest living relative, his sister's granddaughter, was doubled when from either side of her piped up a new voice.

"Hello uncle Spike!"

"Hello uncle William!"

Each child glared at the other with the utter conviction that their own mode of address was the correct one and then smiled up at their 'famous' uncle with all the innocence at their command….and a distinctly 'Dawnish' glint of mischief in their eyes.

Suddenly everybody was crowding round the newcomers and Spike with more introductions and hugging… all to the total disgust of the senior vampire who still couldn't believe that his idiot offspring had kept such a huge secret for so long or that he had the support of those who should know better…dammit! Even Xander was looking impressed. Didn't anybody remember that they were here to avert an apocalypse! He dragged a rather wistful looking Wesley from the chattering crowd and led him roughly to the hall.

"Tell them to meet me tomorrow at my hotel, at three pm. Try reminding them that we're here on business and keep that damn brat's eyes and hands off MY Buffy."

Wesley stood open mouthed as, not giving him an opportunity to reply, his furious boss stormed from the house. Could he really be upset that Spike had his family's forgiveness? Or was he perhaps jealous that he hadn't had the strength to leave anyone in his entire village alive when he was turned. Before he could dwell on his new theory his phone rang. He raised a surprised eyebrow upon hearing the identity of his caller and was soon drawing Giles and Buffy to one side. At his gesture Katherine quickly hustled a loudly protesting pair of children off to the kitchen while the others waited for whatever information Wes had to impart…nobody seemed to register Angel's absence.

"I just received a call from a gentleman who claims to have some pertinent information regarding our pending disaster. He is willing to meet us on neutral ground as long as The Slayer promises not to stake him…again. Says it's quite disconcerting!"

Buffy and Giles wore puzzled expressions; vampire dusting tended to be a one-off event as far as the vampire was concerned. In fact Buffy could only remember one vampire that she had….

"Oh please….no way!" The others noted that there was no anger or fear mixed with her disgust but who on earth….?

"I'm afraid so Buffy." Wes tried to keep the smile from his face as Buffy adopted her 'over my dead body' stance.

"For goodness sake Buffy who are we talking about?" Giles dragged his lens cleaning cloth from his pocket in preparation as he asked the inevitable question but Spike and Anya had already got there and were laughing. Only one vampire, present company excepted, could get that reaction.

Her voice full of disgust and just the faintest touch of amusement Buffy replied

"Dracula."

Dawn squealed with excitement, as did Andrew.

Spike and Anya laughed even harder as Giles rubbed frantically at his spectacles while muttering 'Good Lord' over and over.

Xander 'Renfield' Harris…. Fainted.

TBC

A/N I know I got sidetracked, but you can't feature William's family without delving into his past and so it will be the next chapter that sees the team out and about and Spike & Buffy getting closer. Hope you enjoyed.


	9. Chapter 9

FAMILY TIES Chapter 9

Disclaimer: The big corporations own it all, dammit!

A/N No I haven't disappeared off the planet I just needed to take a break. I got a case of keyboard fatigue - or keyboarditus; either way despite the spirit and the muse being willing the flesh was a right wuss and needed to recuperate.

A/N 2 This chapter features Dracula. He's not a major character in this but I have portrayed him a little differently from the norm in Buffy fan fiction. I know that he was a bit of a pillock in the episode but I'm of the Old School. If it weren't for Bram Stoker and his creation we wouldn't have the likes of Spike or Lestat or Edwa….okay that's a bad example. Let's just say we wouldn't have erotic, sexy vamps, just a bunch of werewolves and mummys. So my Dracula is a little more likeable (I hope!) and a little less evil…that's Angel's role - speaking of which he may get a little darker as the story goes on but will remain hopelessly incompetent. Just in case you thought I would redeem him.

.

Well I never!' thought Wesley bemusedly as he none too gently hauled a still shocked, though thankfully now conscious, Xander to his feet. He didn't understand fully why the whelp… er that is to say the young man, he chided himself - it really was far too easy to pick up Spike's idiosyncratic speech patterns - no, he didn't have a clue as to why Xander had fainted but from the sniggers and chuckles he suspected that his last meeting with the legendary Count had been quite humiliating in some way.

A pang of longing hit him suddenly, here surrounded by not just a group of people with a common cause but by a family, albeit a highly unusual and dysfunctional one. He had hoped to find that sort of family himself with Angel and his colleagues but the souled vampire didn't seem to 'do' family very well. For all his soul's input he still, essentially, thought like a vampire. If you were 'his' then you not only belonged at his side in loyalty and comradeship, you simply 'belonged' - to HIM. It was as though he and the others were some sort of pet or vassals. Not like Giles' collection of misfits. Half the time they spent arguing and the other half defending each other against all comers, just like he had always imagined a real family would do.

He gave a brief chuckle and received a glare from Xander who had obviously presumed that it was directed at him. But it wasn't. It had suddenly occurred to him that his own father was much more like Angel than Giles. A man who had dedicated his life to the Council and who despised vampires with a passion had more in common with vampires than he did with humanity. Wesley wasn't so sure that he was prepared to be 'owned' by Angel since he had left home to avoid the same happening with his father.

And then there was Spike.

Spike - who as a vampire without a soul seemed to possess more humanity than Angel and Wyndham-Price Senior put together; yet who still was kept on the periphery of this oddball but normally accepting family like a child looking in a shop window at the delights within yet not being allowed to enter. Instead the occasional scraps of affection were thrown to him at the whim of the humans. And he could not deny that the teachings of his own profession were partly to blame for that attitude; teachings that he was beginning to doubt the truth of and had no doubt that Giles had already found his own learning less than comprehensive.

As Andrew and Dawn checked on an embarrassed Xander and Giles explained his reaction to the other adults… Oh! Renfield!, no wonder he'd reacted badly, poor sod! thought Wesley briefly before returning to his contemplation of the vampire who was now being fussed over by his own newly met family. He had heard some of what the Scoobies and Spike had been through during Buffy's temporary demise and had seen for himself how the Aurelian had been cast out as soon as Angel had insinuated himself into their midst. If he was honest with himse he had to admit that the tales of Spike's caring for the gang, especially Dawn, had struck him as romanticized exaggeration. Patrolling, yes; Spike was a vampire and any excuse to kill would have been snapped up with alacrity - but cooking, cleaning and helping with homework he had brushed off as utter piffle. Until seeing with his own eyes Spike's willingness to risk his own life for Tara and hearing the revelations of decades of protection of his biological family from his vampiric one. Now he had to wonder why Buffy couldn't see what he could. Why she still insisted that Spike was wholly evil and unable to love. Yes that was what the Council taught it's Watchers and therefore what Giles would have taught Buffy but since when did Buffy Summers take the Council's word on anything.

Of course the answer didn't take much figuring out.

Angel.

Spike's relationship with the others had been, if not a warm one, then at least a tolerable one until Angel had arrived on his PTB sanctioned mission to protect and guide HIS Slayer. 'Bloody pillock' thought Wesley, not caring that he was channelling his 'inner Spike' once again. He had too many questions running around inside his head and nowhere near enough answers, either about Angel's motives or his part in this mysterious Trinity and the potential apocalypse, nor about what exactly had happened in the old Crawford mansion the night that Tara was cured and the strange effects it was still having - vampires, despite their supernatural origins, were not in the habit of glowing with silvery light - No, as much as he hated the thought he would have to grovel to Giles for some answers. He had a feeling that the older Watcher wasn't anywhere as near to being out of the loop as Angel wanted him to be.

Wesley tried to put his whirling thoughts to the back of his mind as he dialled Angel's number to get him back in time for their rendezvous with Dracula. He felt a frisson of excitement at the thought of meeting the archetypal Vampire and wondered if it would be too gauche to ask for his autograph.

B*T*V*S

Unlike Wesley who had spent the majority of the time after the phone call to set up the meeting coming up with questions and endeavouring to find some answers, Buffy sat on the edge of her bed desperately trying to will herself not to come up with any questions at all. It was something that she had managed to do without too much trouble so far but the events of the past few days, being in a foreign country, the revelations that undermined everything she had been taught about vampires and the unlocking of her emotions had made living in that quiet, grey and empty place almost impossible.

She had gone, with startling rapidity, from drifting in an Angel spun cocoon of … no, not a cocoon, a web. She shivered at the thought that had popped into her head. Butterflies created cocoons but creepy spiders spun webs. She couldn't see Spike spinning webs - he would only get confused and impatient and end up with some sort of demonic crocheted doily. Buffy giggled at the mental picture. No, Spike was more your silk moth sort of bug….

"Well that's a welcome sound. We haven't heard much of that lately…which is understandable! I didn't mean that you should be all cheerful Buffy because you so shouldn't, well not unless you want to because there…there's nothing wrong with that too. I didn't mean to…"

"Breathe Willow!" Buffy smiled indulgently as her best friend dithered and bumbled… 'yes, despite everything still my best friend' she realised with relief.

"S…sorry Buffy…um, can I come in? "

Buffy's smile faded momentarily; there was a time when neither of them would feel so distanced from the other that they felt the need to ask. Well, she brightened and sent Willow a genuine grin, that's one thing that's easy to solve.

"You never need to ask Will, you know that." Buffy patted the mattress she sat on and Willow sat down next to her each half turned to face the other, her green eyes suspiciously bright.

"Do I?" she asked timidly. "I mean I wouldn't blame you if you hated me, I did a terrible thing and I don't know how to make it right…. No, no, I don't want to make it right" she admitted, not daring to meet the Slayer's judgemental eyes. "Because to make it right would mean that I'd lose you again, and…and it hurt so much when you were gone. But I didn't think and I'm so sorry…"

Willow felt a small and warm hand cup her chin and turn her head up to meet that dreaded look. To her surprise there was no emotion in the Slayer's hazel orbs other than affection, maybe even love.

"It's over Will, and I know you're sorry and I forgive you if you think you need that but you don't really…need that I mean." Buffy sighed; one thing about this ennui thing was that no-one expected you to talk let alone make any sense when you did. Seeing that Willow was desperately hanging on her every garbled word she tried again.

"I can't deny that I didn't want to come back and that I was angry with you for bringing me here" she placed a finger on her friend's lips before yet another 'I'm sorry' could escape. "But I didn't think how difficult it must have been for you, for all of you, to carry on without me…I know how hard it was when Mom died and I'm not sure that if I could have had her back as she was instead of a zombie that I would have had the courage to leave her be. You are a very talented witch and, maybe except for Giles…and shoot me for saying it but possibly Spike…" she surprised herself with the thought let alone saying it out loud "…you are the smartest person I know, but you are still human and humans make mistakes… and maybe, just maybe this being alive thing isn't as bad as I thought it would be" she admitted as much to herself as to Willow.

For a few moments neither girl said anything, content to sit in an atmosphere of companionship that neither had felt for some time, even before Buffy had jumped from the tower. Finally, feeling herself in danger of worrying the red headed witch with her silence Buffy spoke. With all the hustle and bustle she hadn't really managed to get a grip on Willow and Tara's strange experience with the Goddess.

"So, Will….um…what's the what with the glowy?" Seeing her friend duck her head and blush she suddenly hoped that the silver glow surrounding the unusual threesome wasn't, well, a threesome! Because that would be so wrong… 'especially with Willow and Tara being gay, and Spike being mine' she thought and immediately clamped down on her sudden possessive feelings for her former mortal enemy. There were some things she was still not prepared to face!

Willow blushed at Buffy's interest and wondered why the Slayer's own face had colored a similar shade. As realization hit her that Buffy must have misinterpreted her and Spike's relationship her blush deepened and she hastened to explain how their link had been formed.

"So you and Spike can't actually read each other's thoughts?"

"No, thank the Goddess!" Buffy laughed at Willow's shudder as she replied to the question. She could imagine that the thoughts of a hundred and thirty plus vampire would be a bit much for the still quite innocent Willow. She had to admit, though only to herself, that she felt a little spark of jealousy at the trio having any sort of connection at all. She feared that she had burnt all her bridges as far as Spike was concerned. She listened as Willow went on to explain how it was Tara who had the stronger rapport and could differentiate between the Demon, William and Spike's own thoughts.

Buffy was shocked. "You mean there are three different personas in his head, like multiple personality disorder!?" 'God, no wonder he could seem a little helter skelter sometimes!

"According to Tara it's not so much three personalities but one personality with three aspects to it. Each part of Spike makes a contribution to the person we know as Spike but sometimes the demon is needed to take control and sometimes, like when Spike was chipped and the demon was scared and unable to feed William took charge to teach him how to adapt." Willow shook her head in wonder once again. She had never realised how complex the vampire was until she had a front row seat into his psyche.

Buffy was becoming more and more sure by the minute that she had severely underestimated the British vampire. This was not the mindless killer that first Giles, who seemed to have had a massive turnaround on that view himself, and lately Angel, who should have known better…probably DID know better….had taken every opportunity to drum into her, initially innocent and later bruised and battered mind.

"Buffy?"

Buffy snapped back to the moment at the concern in Willow's voice.

"Sorry Will, just starting to wake up" 'Been in the dark too long' she added mentally as she felt a new yet familiar strength course through her.

"Yeah, this jet lag really sucks huh?!"

Buffy smiled as her friend took her comment literally and didn't try to correct her. She still had a lot to work out in her head, including rearranging who was friend and who was…not so much. She just hoped that she hadn't left it too late to call Spike a friend, or maybe even more…maybe.

"Come on Will" Buffy shook off the sudden hopes and fears and Willow saw that look in her best friend's eyes that hadn't been in evidence for so long… determination and purpose. "Help me choose something to wear for this meet, something Slayerish. Though why we should meet in a cemetery is beyond me. Talk about cliché!"

B*T*V*S

Luckily the Tennyson's townhouse wasn't too far from their destination so, after many goodnights and goodbyes, exhortations to wrap up warm and polite refusals of thermos flasks of tea Giles, Wesley, Buffy, Angel, Spike, Xander, Tara, Willow and Anya made their way to one of the most famous cemeteries in London, if not the world. They would have gotten away sooner if it hadn't been for the arrival of a protesting Angel who spent ten very long minutes demanding why Dracula had called Wesley instead of him and why,,,yada yada yada… He finally gave up when Lady Amelia told him in no uncertain terms to stop being such a bore and act like a gentleman even if he would never be one. It was Giles opinion that her 'unlike my dear William' was the comment that had made him growl and turn a quite odd shade of puce. Wesley agreed in a clinical tone that it was quite a difficult color for a vampire to achieve. Dawn and Andrew's protests at being left behind, even if Doyle had volunteered to stay and protect them, almost threatened to equal Angel's but a little bribery from Katherine in the form of old photo albums promising pictures of a human William and his siblings soothed their anger. Much to Spike's horror. If only photography had been invented a few decades later.

"Giles?"

"Yes Buffy dear?"

Buffy held back a wince as she witnessed the happiness in her surrogate father's eyes at the simple act of her talking to him. She had thought that he had been distancing himself from her for some reason - something she had done wrong - but now, like with most other things in her life over the last weeks she had to re-evaluate. Was this more of Angel's meddling? She smiled at her Watcher and his own expression lightened even more.

'Yep!' she concluded. Another Angel screw-up.

"I was just wondering… I mean color me clueless but how can a cemetery be considered neutral ground? I mean it's a cemetery! Y'know, vampire… in the graveyard… with the sharp dentistry" She smiled as her board game reference made him shake his head in fond exasperation. She knew that as a Buffyism it was a bit lame but it still felt good to banter once again. Suddenly it was her turn to look exasperated, and not fondly, as Angel interrupted. She noted with pleasure though that Spike had smirked at her look; nice to see that he was taking an interest!

Angel's superior tone cut through her musing rather like nails down a blackboard.

"Highgate cemetery is…." Angel broke off in shock as Buffy glared at him and poked a none too gentle fingernail into his chest… he fancied that it might have actually broken the skin. But it was her words that cut him the most. Since when had she begun to get so contrary again. He had thought that she was mellowing. That she was becoming the young sweet little girl that he had fallen in love with the moment he first saw her. As everyone stopped and watched the confrontation with interest Buffy made her opinion clear, to Giles delight and Angel's chagrin.

"No Angel! Giles is my Watcher. It's his job to, well, to watch stuff. Then he gives me the answers I need to do my job. I am The Slayer and he is MY Watcher, not you or Wesley" Buffy gave the younger Watcher an apologetic smile before refocusing her glare on the bemused and angry vampire.

More than one member of the group hastily hid a smile and a tear at the return of the old stubborn streak. 'Who would have thought that Bossy Buffy would have been so sorely missed' thought Giles with quiet satisfaction while his Ripper side felt a less benevolent sense of satisfaction at the look of hurt bewilderment on the elder vampire's face.

Wesley was wearing a watcherly frown and Angel waited for him to put Buffy right on her errant opinions; to assert his dominance as the senior watcher for the group, a role that he had been performing well under his own benevolent guidance. But Wesley remained silent and it was Angel's turn to frown in confusion and consternation.

Wesley, for his part, wondered how it had taken the guileless words of a Slayer to remind him that the Watcher / Slayer relationship was a highly personal one. That it wasn't just a question of research and knowledge and that he had no right to interfere in that. He figured that the best thing he could do now to correct that mistake was to remain silent and allow the natural order to re-establish itself.

Giles paused momentarily, waiting for Wesley to intervene as he had done on so many other occasions of late. He cast the other Watcher a grateful glance when he remained silent. As they entered the gates of Highgate Cemetery, Spike taking point, leaving Angel to protect their rear, Giles explained the unique nature of the Victorian burial ground.

"Highgate has always been a cemetery of note, many famous people are buried here and it has always had a certain allure as a rather unusual tourist destination. The combination is, to vampires, rather like an all you can eat buffet. Two of the most ancient and influential clans in Europe quickly realised this and so began a war which lasted nearly sixty years. The Borgia - Calligari Clan and the Raleigh Clans almost wiped themselves, and a good percentage of several other minor clans out in their struggles to gain dominance over this small piece of London."

"It had become a matter of honor by the end; nobody cared much about the original aims. In fact even the humans finally took the hint and kept away from the graveyard" added Wesley and Giles nodded. Buffy was pleased to see a new lack of aggravation between the two Watchers. She rather liked Wes as a person, even if he was stuffier than Giles at his stuffiest; it was just his horning in on HER Watcher's territory she didn't like.

"So how did it end?" she asked, genuinely interested. As long as she didn't think of it as history, because her and school type stuff had parted company long ago.

"Well, the leaders of the Clans realised that they were risking everything they had built over the centuries" continued Giles. Of course each vampire only having a handful of childer and minions left may have had some sway in their decision. They finally declared Parley…"

"Like in Pirates of the Caribbean?" Xander's voice still held a trace of his fear but his curiosity was winning out.

"Indeed. The result of their meeting was to declare the feud ended and a decree that Highgate become a neutral place - rather like Switzerland. A place where humans walk in safety because no hunting is allowed and where vampires of different clans can meet and socialise in peace."

As they reached the main gate Giles addressed the others in a solemn voice.

"Please understand this. There is to be no violence here. No staking. You will see vampires coming and going freely; they won't approach you and they will expect you to do them the same courtesy."

"You can't expect us to…" began Angel but Giles silenced him with a raised hand.

"I expect you to conduct yourselves with decorum, just as I expect Dracula's party to…However, while violence is not permitted here one is allowed to protect oneself. If attacked you will be permitted and indeed expected to defend yourself. Just make sure that you don't act in haste or we will all repent at Dracula's leisure.

With agreeing nods and a muttered complaint from Angel which everyone ignored the group entered the oldest and most evocative of Victorian times section of the oddest tourist attraction in London.

B*T*V*S

Buffy couldn't help but think that Dracula looked somehow more at home, more 'in place' here in this grand yet deathly setting than he had in Sunny California. She also noted, with amusement, that he completely by-passed a rather puffed up Angel. Or was that puffy? She hadn't thought that vamps could gain weight but Angel had definitely piled on a few pounds since he'd been in LA - must be the otter blood, she mused. Then again, she couldn't imagine sweet Victorian William having such a drool worthy and studly muscular body as Spike had… 'okay, so not the time for such thoughts' Buffy chided herself with more than a hint of regret.

Angel glared as the Count neatly sidestepped his challenging stance, his long cloak with the gold bat design clasp swishing in that annoyingly perfect way that made him feel like a lumbering peasant, and homed in on his even more annoying Grandchilde. It was a direct snub under vampiric tradition and had not gone unnoticed by the various curious bystanders who he knew would take the gossip back to their various Clans and Houses. And there were plenty of Clans represented; this was a meeting of historic proportions. Two of the most ancient and influential Clans and the most successful Slayer in history. As historic greetings went, however, it was far less formal than later journals would record it to have been.

"Oi you wanker! You owe me eleven …."

"Pounds; with interest, as agreed" finished Dracula with a grin to match Spike's. The blond quirked an eyebrow in surprise as Dracula handed over a thick envelope, giving a little bow as he did so.

"Hell!" muttered Spike. He had never actually expected the vamp to pay up! They had been greeting each other this way for decades. He didn't bother counting the hundred and three thousand pounds. Drac was many things but in business he was a man of his word. Instead he handed the envelope over to a bemused Buffy.

"There you go luv; should keep the wolves from the door for a while."

A whole summer as carer for those at the house on Revello Drive had left Spike with an intimate knowledge of the Summers financial situation. He also knew that Giles had petitioned the Council for a regular wage when Buffy returned and had been flatly denied. He didn't know, but strongly suspected, that Angel now held the purse strings and was using that power to control the Slayer's life. After all how could Buffy be independent if she had to beg the great poofter for every penny. He didn't expect her to accept his offer easily though.

"S…Spike!" Buffy looked at the thick wad of cash in the envelope. She couldn't work out the exchange rate but even so it looked like a fairly huge sum. "I can't acc…"

"Too damn right we can't accept!" Angel made no attempt to conceal his anger at the offer; and in his furious state he failed to notice Buffy frown. "We don't want your dirty money Dracula. Especially from the likes of you. God knows what poor bloody corpses you stole it from!"

A flicker of anger crossed Dracula's face but it was Wesley who spoke up, much to Angel's disappointment.

"You know full well that that is untrue Angel. In fact you yourself told me about the intricacies in vampire business dealings. There is no way that The Count would dishonor his people by offering tainted gelt."

Wesley sounded confident in his proclamation and judging by Dracula's acknowledging nod of the head, and Angel's scowl, Giles concluded that not only was Wesley correct but that he had gained knowledge from his time with AI Investigations that was new to both himself and his Watcher's profession in general. It might be worth the two of them getting together to trade that knowledge rather than wasting valuable energy and time vying for attention like a couple of six year olds.

Buffy, meanwhile, was seething. Whether she accepted Spike's gift or not was down to her and her alone… well, maybe her and Dawn. It was certainly not up to Mr Power Trip! And it hadn't escaped her that, unlike Angel, Spike hadn't attempted to set conditions on his generosity. He seemed to know her financial situation; she supposed that was only natural given his activities while she had been 'away' His offer was made in a genuine desire to help… and Wesley had said that it wasn't blood money….

Dracula had to admit that he was impressed with the attitude of the humans. Wyndham - Pryce showed great intelligence and impartiality, and if he didn't already know what his answer would be he would offer to make him his personal Steward to the House of Dracula. The Brit's loyalty obviously lay elsewhere. He just wasn't sure whether the Watcher had realised yet that he was being loyal to the wrong Aurelian. 'Honestly! Calls himself head of Aurelius' thought the Count with embarrassment. 'Makes a demon want to apologise for being a vampire! Knowing better than to show weakness or insult to the other Aurelian Master by doing any such thing Dracula instead turned to Buffy, which carried the added bonus of delivering another snub to Angelus and explained that the money was obtained from legal investments, emphasising that it was bad etiquette and bad business practice to resort to underhand dealings in inter-clan business dealings. His comment that he left that to lawyers raised a much needed chuckle and reassured Buffy enough to politely and, to everyone's surprise, humbly thank both Dracula and Spike for their generosity. Xander wanted to object. To remind Buffy that she was dealing with evil bad vamps here but even if he wasn't cowed by his memories of his bug eating days with the Count he really couldn't manage to raise any enthusiasm for his own objections. Nothing was as it should be anymore! Well, except Angel - he was still a slimy creep! And if she had her own money Buffy wouldn't have to look to the pervy vamp for every last little thing which was majorly of the good…when did life become so complicated he wondered as he followed the others into the sumptuous trailer that had been arranged for the meeting.

As the ice seemed to have been broken Dracula proceeded to introduce his entourage. 'Good job he's not a Lestat style rock star' thought Spike as he watched the flamboyant vampire meet and greet. 'Would probably bankrupt the record company with his riders.'

"Ahh, this sis a face I recognize… Mr Harris, welcome back."

Xander's teeth practically rattled in his nervousness, and although Spike had earlier taken pity on him and informed him that he couldn't be 'Renfielded' twice he still kept his gaze averted from the vampire's hypnotic orbs.

Dracula just chuckled as he moved on to the others. He noticed the demon girl, Anya, scowl at something behind him. Upon turning his head he saw, to his exasperation, that his 'brides' had cornered Mr Giles and were attempting to get re-acquainted. Really! It had taken them weeks to stop talking about the, in their words, 'dreamy Englishman' It would seem, the vampire concluded, that Mr Giles 'qualities' had been noticed by the ex-vengeance demon. Well, rather him than me Dracula thought with a shiver at the idea of trying to keep one of 'them' happy!

"Ladies!" At his request, which they knew to be a politely couched order the three white clad women backed reluctantly away. Giles wasn't sure whether he should be pleased or disappointed.

Finally, after a polite round of how do you do's where everyone (except Angel) smiled brightly while secretly waiting for a stake to the heart or a fang to the throat Dracula drew a final member of his family forward for introductions and everyone could see the deference with which he introduced her.

"And finally, may I introduce my Mate, my Beloved, Mina Harker."

The couple watched as mouths gaped and gasped at the revelation of a woman they had believed to be a fictional character in Bram Stoker's novel. Spike smirked slightly as the beautiful vampiress pulled him in for a hug. He didn't see why everyone should be surprised; after all Dracula himself had been real, so why not the others. Just because Stoker had changed the real ending - but then what reader would want to know how their hero, Jonathan, had turned out to be a prig and a monumental bore unable to hang on to his vivacious and intelligent wife who had never forgotten her vampire lover and willingly consented to be his wife, his mate. Spike would give his unbeating heart to a woman who would love him half as much as Mina loved her vamp. He had met the eternal Mate of his fellow vampire several times and was always treated like family. He winced, however, when she ruffled his hair. Why did they all insist on doing that!

Soon the ubiquitous tea was arranged and everyone who was deemed necessary to the meeting had settled themselves on the various chairs and couches. Both Giles and Anya were pleased that the brides had floated off somewhere - though that relief stemmed from very different reasonings. Anya, especially, was still trying to come to terms with the unexpected pain that seeing her employer being fawned over had brought. That the brides were revealed by Mina to be a smokescreen which preserved her and her beloved's privacy didn't seem to help at all. It just meant that they were free agents…and the thought of them signing Giles up for their team was not pleasing to her…not pleasing at all! Giles was simply relieved that his unwanted role of sex symbol was, hopefully, soon forgotten. He hadn't liked the way it seemed to upset Anya, though he couldn't think why the normally unflappable ex-demon would be overly concerned. He had to admit, though, that that concern did give him a warm feeling inside.

Both Giles and Anya reluctantly turned their attention to the speaker of the moment.

Angel…

Whining again.

"In case nobody noticed WE are the good guys…well, most of us" Angel cast a scathing glance Spike's way only to be met with a smirk from his errant Grandchilde and a scowl from his beloved Buffy. Disconcerted at her increasingly confrontational attitude he returned his attention to their host.

"What rights do you claim to lead this discussion? Since when do YOU want to see justice done?!"

Dracula was unperturbed by Angel's outburst but noted with interest that no-one on his own team seemed overly supportive of his opinions.

"It is not a question of justice Angelus; it is a question, quite frankly, of not wanting to rock the boat. It is a question of wanting to protect MY family; something that you have never been too eager to do - how was your dear Sire the last time you met? Dusty I hear." They all heard the venom in that comment and while neither Buffy nor Giles were sorry to see the end of Darla the Count had a point, if you thought it through from a vamps standpoint that is. It just wasn't polite to kill one's creator..

Angel was, for once, wise enough to keep quiet and Buffy took the opportunity to ask a question.

"And why would what's going on affect you and yours? I thought this would suit the vamp population fine." Buffy hadn't mentioned what they knew, she wanted to know if Drac was just fishing or had something to contribute.

Dracula paused to gather his thoughts for a moment before replying. These people, including the Aurelians, had no reason to want to help him preserve his way of life. Indeed in normal circumstances they would be trying to kill each other. But this was bigger than any of them and besides he had no wish to watch a life that had taken years to establish be destroyed when a little cooperation could alter a probable horrendous outcome.. He felt so strongly that he was even prepared to make concessions - but only as a last resort of course!

"I am sure that you have interpreted the signs in a similar fashion as we have and have reached the same conclusion - that London is to be the birthing ground of a new Hellmouth." He noticed expressions of agreement and nodded his head respectfully to Tara as it was revealed that it was she who had correctly assessed the situation for them. In fact he almost couldn't drag his eyes away from the young Wiccan. Not that she was physically beautiful, attractive, yes, but not as breathtaking as his Mina; but the pure goodness of her soul radiated a spiritual warmth that even made his demon long for her blessing. That Spike was linked to her - well, he was a very fortunate vampire and, he suspected from the research findings, more special than anyone could possibly imagine.

Dracula, for once, told the simple unvarnished truth, confirmed by the Watchers, that London, as a major centre of both business and culture in both the demon and human communities, had developed a mutually beneficial relationship; he admitted that an influx of their more bestially minded brethren would undermine that delicate balance; that in essence his Clan ruled the London demon community and he didn't want any trouble.

Buffy sat next to Spike and listened quietly but inside she was puzzled…and hurt. All her slaying life she had been told and shown that it was simple - demons bad, humans and Slayers good. Slayers kill demons QED. But it wasn't like that at all. Faith was a Slayer and she was bad to the core; Willow was good yet nearly went bad and Spike! Spike was good AND bad, or rather bad and then good, and all without a soul while Angel was good (as he would no doubt remind you at the drop of a hat) yet he had been behaving quite badly lately without any sign of Angelus! She had a sudden nostalgic desire for the days when bat faced Masters and the school prom was all she had to deal with. God! All of this was giving her a headache! Who was she supposed to trust? What was she supposed to be?

A sudden warm tingle spread through her neck muscles and flowed over her temples banishing the headache as Dracula's voice faded into the background. She was vaguely aware that Giles and Wesley were talking possible tactics with the Count, only to be shot down every few seconds by an irate Angel. Anya seemed to be instructing Mina in the intricacies of retail. None of it mattered as Spike's gentle touch soothed her. She didn't question the fact that as he slid his long, elegant, fingers along the top of her spine she could 'hear' Tara's soft chant in her head and could smell the subtle scent of roses.

This she could trust. Her gut told her this. This was pure goodness, born of Tara and delivered by Spike…No. For some reason she knew instinctively that this was William. She didn't dare turn around lest the spell be broken. Unfortunately neither of them had a say in the matter as Angel, spotting Spike's innocent ministrations gave a roar and, grabbing the younger vampire by the throat, threw him across the trailer's lounge area.

As their link broke Tara cried out and slipped from her chair into a dead faint. All movement ceased for a split second before Willow's hair and eyes turned coal black and Angel feared for his very un-life

TBC

Hope you enjoyed!


	10. Chapter 10

Family Ties chapter ten

Disclaimer: I own nothing but my imagination.

A/N Since it's been so long since my last update a little reminder of where we are is in order: The gang have gone to London to prevent the opening of a new hell mouth and have attended a meeting with Dracula at Highgate cemetery. While Spike was soothing Buffy's headache with the mental help of Tara Angel saw red and attacked Spike. As the connection between Spike Buffy & Tara broke the wiccan lost consciousness and Willow went into a rage…y'know the black and scary sort. Now please read on…..

.

Mentally Spike was torn in different directions. The part of him that was William wanted to go and make sure that Tara was alright while the part of him that was the Demon wanted to do what it always wanted to do…tear Angel limb from limb. Fortunately it was Spike doing the thinking and he aimed his body in the one direction where it could do most good - at Willow. For as frightening as her appearance had become with the black eyes and hair and the sparks shooting from her fingers their link told him that underneath it all she was just a girl scared for the one she loved and wanting revenge for the hurt inflicted on her. Love and revenge were two emotions that Spike had no trouble at all understanding…but for her own good he couldn't let that happen.

As Mina, Xander and Anya edged their way to Tara's unconscious form not wanting to attract undue attention from the furious witch while Giles Dracula and Wesley cornered an angry Angel who immediately raised his hands in surrender…he wasn't stupid enough to argue with two stakes and a sharp set of fangs; Buffy headed toward Willow only to be beaten to her goal by… Spike! She stopped dead as the blond vampire crashed to his knees behind the distraught witch and pulled her in close to his body. What happened next had everyone in the trailer diverting their attention to the centre of the room and the sheer power radiating from the couple kneeling there.

Spike wasn't sure what was happening to him but something deep inside told him that it was necessary and that all would be well so he gave himself in to the feelings coursing through him and felt his demon come forth. Seeing Spike holding her best friend and going into game face Buffy made to move toward them, a stake in her hand and her heart breaking into a thousand pieces. She had thought, up until now, that sending Angel into hell had been the hardest kill she had ever had to make but this, this was a hundred times worse! Suddenly a cool hand touched her shoulder and she found herself staring into the face of a woman she had, until an hour ago, thought to be fictional. The deep brown eyes held none of the bloodlust or insanity of Drusilla's but there was something equally as other-worldly about Mina that made her pause. With a hint of panic she realised that if the vampiress possessed thrall she was already lost.

"All will be well Slayer…it is not what you think" Mina smiled at the look on Buffy's face and purposely cast her eyes down. "I do possess thrall but I would not dishonour you by using it, especially here."

Buffy noted that for a supposed bunch of evil creatures vampires seemed to set great store by the concept of honour just as she noted the trust that Mina was showing by diverting her gaze from a Slayer with a stake in her hand. That was, however, all she had time to note because in those few seconds of interaction with the Victorian vampire the situation had changed drastically. The men no longer needed to keep an eye on Angel and the group who were checking on a now conscious Tara were following the wiccan's shocked gaze toward the couple in the middle of the room.

Spike wasn't sure that he could do this…hell he wasn't even sure what it was that he was doing. He only knew that Willow, not Tara, was in danger at the moment and he could help so he would no matter what it took. Once the decision was made he gave control over to fate and his demon and felt the young witch's power begin to flow through him. His demon roared at the influx of darkness and drank it up like the finest slayer blood while his William sent thoughts of calm, snippets of poetry and pure love in the opposite direction.

The onlookers watched in awe as the black leached out of a suddenly calm Willow until both her eyes and hair were a pure white and flowed into the vampire, flooding his amber eyes with inky darkness and turning his platinum hair a shade that rivalled Dracula's own. Tara desperately wanted to go to them but instinct told her that this was not her battle.

Angel stared in disbelief at the events his actions had triggered. Why wasn't Buffy staking his pest of a grandchilde?! When had his unlife begun to spiral out of control - even Angelus commanded more respect than this! Angel vowed to himself that William would pay for making a fool of him like this in front of his people, that supercilious bastard Dracula and especially Buffy.

Xander couldn't believe his eyes. Sure he had listened when Tara and Willow had described how Captain Peroxide had saved Tara's life but he hadn't really believed it, had been convinced that he had somehow duped them but seeing was believing and he was seeing this with his own eyes. Spike was draining off whatever dark magic had consumed his oldest friend and no-one had asked him, bribed or threatened him to do it! Damn! Xander sighed and received a sympathetic smile from Wesley. They both knew that their whole world view or at least their demonic world view, had been turned on it's head tonight. They also knew that being white hats they would have to come to terms with it because it would be an injustice to do anything else. 'Still' thought Xander hopefully, 'Maybe he won't survive this, whatever it was' His conscience immediately gave him a kick in the head and he sighed again. Double damn!

Spike's demon was in demonic heaven. The darkness flowing through him was wonderful. It had been so long since he had felt so much fear pain and anger. Even before the men in coats had put the chip in his brain he had felt the lack of enthusiasm in his host for the kill. This more than made up for that but he resigned himself to making the most of it. He had made a commitment to the Goddess and he was a demon of his word…though maybe if the witch needed a little siphoning of her darkness now and then she might allow him to treat himself!

Spike mentally rolled his eyes at the demon's glee. He also noticed that the dark energy was dwindling which was a good thing because he was getting a cramp…and not in a good place! William was exhausted, demon was as high as a kite and quite frankly he could do with a nap himself. No sooner had he thought the thought than he collapsed like a puppet with his strings cut and the once more blue eyed peroxide vamp slid to the ground in a manly collapse….most definitely not a swoon or a faint he would later remind anyone foolish enough to utter those terms.

If a situation could possess thrall then that one did and it was several seconds before any of the witnesses could think clearly or move but once the shock wore off the occupants of the room got themselves in gear. Dracula immediately called for restraints to be placed on the older Aurelian, who gave Buffy a look of kicked puppy proportions when she didn't object while his Mate called for refreshments to be brought in. Tara moved to gather a shocked, confused but once again green eyed and red headed Willow into a happy embrace before they both levitated an unconscious Spike onto the nearest couch. Willow looked up to see Xander offering a cool damp cloth to tend the vampire who was looking a little flushed, not normal for the undead, and as much as he hated being helpful and grateful to the peroxide pest the blindingly happy smile from Willow filled him with a warmth that he knew he owed to the vampire. He caught his breath as he realised that without Spike he would have lost Willow twice over; firstly when Tara would have died at least in spirit if not in body; and secondly this evening. Maybe, just maybe Spike deserved a chance. Xander spared a glance toward the petulant Angel and knew that not all vampires were the same and some had already used up all their chances. He also noted with pleasure that Buffy hadn't spared her first love as much as a tender glance…just a few well aimed glares. He preferred to ignore the glances she had been giving to the blacked out vamp, denial was a river that took a while to get out of and though he had the funny feeling that it was now inevitable he didn't see why he had to make it easy.

B*T*V*S

"Shhh"

"But I'm…"

"I said hush…and lay back, you're still too warm."

"I will n…"

Buffy slapped a fresh cool cloth over the uncooperative vampire's face before reaching over to the small antique table to grab a mug of blood. She whipped the cloth off and shoved the warm O-neg under the vampire's nose.

"Drink" she commanded in her most slayerish fashion…and one might almost imagine that if she had been in a position to do so she might have been tapping an impatient little slayer foot. Several faces, most notably the male ones, in the audience for the Slayer's little performance wore amused grins as Spike, Slayer of Slayers and self proclaimed Big Bad was well and truly hen-pecked. Of course even Buffy would admit that she didn't have the nurturing mother hen talents of her mother or Tara but Spike already knew this and so drank the blood down without complaint before she oh so nurturingly broke his nose.

Spike glanced around at those around him so shamelessly enjoying his plight. The evil ones he could understand but weren't the whitehats meant to defend the weak and the helpless, in other words him. He noted with satisfaction that a glowering Angel was sitting in the 'naughty corner' with his shackled hands twisting the chain between the cuffs in frustration…nice to see there was an upside to the whole disaster. Still he couldn't just lay here all evening having his blond goddess feeding him human blood …'okay, he thought, I could, but I can't stand much more of being the prime exhibit in this freak show' With that thought in mind Spike made a move to sit up only to be forced back down by a rather less than gentle slap to the belly.

"Oof!"

"What did I tell you?" Buffy didn't know whether it was because she had seen with her own eyes the lengths Spike would go to in order to protect her friends or whether she felt guilty for all the times she had denied his proclamations of devotion to her and instead used him as her own private stress relief/ punching bag but she had the sudden overwhelming urge to look after the weakened vamp…now if only the damned idiot would cooperate and…and…weaken dammit!

Spike could see the determination in Buffy's eyes but he could also see the shock and…for some odd reason, guilt. He reckoned it was time to get things back to normal, at least as normal as you could get in a room full of heroes and villains, ancient vampires and supposedly fictional women. Buffy needed to get back to doing what she did best…save the world, or at least this small part of London which in the era he had come from would have been pretty much the same thing.

"Pet, much as I would love nothing better than to lay here all night you've already made me feel ten times better and I really think that we shouldn't abuse the Count's hospitality…"

"Please, don't concern yourself, take all the time you need dear boy."

Spike spared a vicious glare at the amused elder vampire and then his whole world reduced to the vision of Buffy coyly twirling a strand of hair round her finger and dipping her head shyly - God that should be made illegal! Good job her hand wasn't anywhere near his belly region now he thought as he willed his anatomy to behave.

"I really helped?" Buffy was aware that her killing skills far outweighed her nurturing ones to the point where Dawn wouldn't even allow her to apply band aids without supervision.

"More than you'll ever know luv." Spike's eyes carried the warmth that her tenderness had brought to his unbeating heart. He knew that she would never love him but just allowing him the common courtesies and thoughtfulness that she would give any living man was more than he could ever have asked for.

Buffy's breath caught in her throat and her eyes misted over. Had she really been so cold towards him that a simple act of kindness could make him react so? And was it really her disconnection from life that had made her so frigid in her emotions or was that Angels's influence…she really wasn't sure any more.

Before she could think the thought through any more a discreet cough snapped them both back to reality.

Giles had thought that he had gotten a lucky break when Angel had left Buffy 'for her own good' but it looked like history was about to repeat itself, yet this time it felt different…but then they were all different from the people they had been back then. He, himself, had been an innocent abroad as far as demon lore and teenage hormones were concerned and both Buffy and the other youngsters had matured beyond all recognition; he suspected that even Xander was beginning to grow up and Spike was not the vampire that Angel was and is. Besides all this had the suspicious scent of matchmaking about it…a very particular scent of roses. He resisted the urge to smile as he thought he heard a tinkling giggle in the far distance. Still this was hardly the time for romance, his eyes drifted involuntarily to the ex vengeance demon as he coughed to alert Buffy and Spike of their duty.

It didn't take long before everyone was seated as before though Angel had to give an oath of good behaviour before he was released and his chair was moved away from Buffy and the scoobies and close to their host who was making patterns on the table they sat around with a very pointy stake.

"So before we were so rudely interrupted" all eyes turned to Angel who ducked his head though whether in anger or shame nobody knew or cared. "What, if anything, do you know that might help us stop this new hell mouth from opening?" Buffy felt on more solid ground now; this was like breathing to her.

Dracula put the trappings of his status behind him now, this was too important for posturing. "I'm not sure, from the research we have done whether stopping the hell mouth from opening is actually possible…or even wise." He waited for the babble around him to fade before continuing. "From excerpts in several reliable texts the last time a hell mouth was denied it's release it only moved location and gave rise to the biggest and worst outlet of evil in history." They didn't need to be told where that was they had been living on it long enough but the name slipped out of Xander's mouth anyway. The thought of inflicting the life they had been forced to lead over the years on some poor unsuspecting town was not something he thought he could live with.

"Sunnydale."

"Indeed Mr Harris" replied Dracula who was pleased to see that these young people realised the dangers of rushing in and possibly causing more harm than good.

"I would like to examine these documents" Wesley's request beat Giles by a split second and made the others smile 'Watchers!'

"All documents have been parcelled up and are ready for you to take when you leave gentelmen."

"He's being too cooperative, it's some sort of trap!" Angel was used to his warnings being taken seriously so to say that he was surprised by the reaction was an understatement.

"Oh do shut up!" Wesley was getting more than tired of his boss's tantrums.

"You will show respect to your superiors Wesley otherwise you might find yourself out of a job and out on the streets! "

"Too late, I quit."

"And he will always have a place with us" Giles decision was not something he would usually take unilaterally but Angel needed to be shown that it was him that was now the outsider, he felt an absolute imperative to keep the Aurelian away from Buffy. He was relieved, however, to hear the immediate echoes of support from those around him. Wesley suddenly found that it was particularly difficult to breath with your heart lodged in your throat. Angel's directive hadn't surprised him and his own response had given him an instant feeling of relief but the support of Giles and his friends…well that was unexpected and very very moving.

"Thank you, thank you all very much. I would be delighted to come and help you in your efforts." What he actually wanted to do was burst into tears and hug everyone, except Angel of course, but a lifetime of British bred 'stiff upper lip' made that impossible. Yet he could see from the smiles that his message had been heard.

"Angelus, it seems that you are rather surplus to requirements here. You are free to leave." Buffy noted that the eyes of every vamp in the room glowed gold as Dracula spoke his words of dismissal.

"If you think that I am going to leave Buffy alone with you" Angel all but growled, totally ignoring the others that would also be left alone with the vampire and therefore also revealing the lack of interest in their wellbeing, "then you're even more insane than I took you for."

Angel had stood to make his comment and towered above the still seated head of the Tepes line. It was supposed to intimidate the other vampire but he was rewarded with little more than a cursory glance.

"It wasn't a request Angelus Aurelius." At his dismissive reply which somehow made Angel's name sound like a deadly insult for all it's calm delivery two of Dracula's senior minions flanked the glowering vampire ready to escort him from the meeting…whether he was agreeable or not. Angel turned an imploring glance toward Buffy, she wouldn't let him down; she couldn't manage without him to guide her…he'd seen to that!

Buffy's expression was one of sorrow but her words were businesslike. "Sorry Angel but this is too important to risk screwing it up and you're not helping. We'll meet later and fill you in." She tried not to notice the rage that shimmered behind Angel's crestfallen expression but she had a strong feeling that something had been irrevocably broken between them tonight and that that was not necessarily a bad thing. But still, it wasn't something she had wished for and she felt bad for dealing such a blow. As she willed her lip not to tremble a cool hand slipped into her left one and a warm hand into her right. She glanced to see who was giving her their support.

Spike, which should have been surprising but wasn't and Xander! Xander standing with Spike! She never thought she would see the day and from the gasp of surprise from the vamp neither did he!

Angel took one last look at the girl who had loved him standing between the two who most hated him and with the voice of Angelus in the back of his mind telling him that now was not the time for action he stalked out of the trailer and into the night.

Once the drama was over those remaining got back to business. After some general discussion on the subject of the workings of hell mouths and a reading of the translated prophecy which both Wesley and Giles managed to further make clear leaving no-one in any doubt that London was, indeed, going to give rise to the event feared Dracula offered some information which had both watchers reaching for their handkerchiefs to clean their spectacles…and Wesley wasn't even wearing any.

"I was recently approached by two gentlemen who seemed more than normally interested in the hell mouth prophecy. Both humans, the academic sort. At first I just assumed that they were after my life story…fame can be such a chore you know"

Spike rolled his eyes in mock exasperation…they could all see the self mocking glint in Dracula's dark eyes. Buffy clapped an embarrassed hand to her mouth as she inelegantly snorted and Tara, to everyone's surprise, giggled at the vampire's antics. Dracula, for his part, felt the shock of unexplainable pleasure at making the shy wiccan laugh; a shared glance with Mina confirmed what they had suspected, that the trinity of Tara, Spike and Willow were very special indeed…not that they needed to reveal their knowledge of that particular relationship, not yet anyway.

"Is it usual to find yourself being approached by humans?" Giles had to admit that the thought of the world and his grandmother being aware of vampires true existence was a little alarming. He was at first reassured by Dracula's reply and then at the revelation of the visitors identity shocked.

"Not in general but there are those for whom 'Interview with a Vampire' was more a how to do it book than a fictional creation and now and again an individual will find his or her way to me."

"What do you do?" Willow was afraid to ask but her curiosity was undimmed by the nights events even if her conscience was troubled by her display of darkness.

"Usually I just put on a bit of a show and sent them on their way. Some I relieved of their memories of the meeting and some left having had an adventure which they will never forget…one cannot underestimate the value of good publicity."

"The gentlemen?" Giles was realising that it was almost as hard to keep the Count on track as it was their own bleached wonder. Mina's gentle smirk indicated that she was fully aware of the two vamps similarities.

"Ah yes. Well it turns out that the two individuals so interested in the hell mouth were in fact from the Watcher's Council."

"Is that so surprising" asked Wesley, curious at the look of something less than pleasant flashing through the dark brown eyes.

"Not as such, no; but when they are eager to learn what you know about opening a hell mouth rather than closing it then yes, I would say that was very surprising…not to mention disturbing."

"Good Lord!" Giles and Wesley exclaimed together while Spike's verbal release was a little more profane.

"I don't understand" admitted Buffy, her query echoed by the nods of her friends.

"Think what the Gypsy boy is trying to say luv, is that Watchers shouldn't be wanting to open hell mouths, not when they're supposed to be the good guys."

"Oh…Ohh!" Buffy's confusion suddenly cleared. "But why would the Watcher's Council want to control the hell mouth?"

"Think you hit the nail on the head there pet."

"I did?" Buffy tried not to sound surprised considering she wasn't sure just what nail exactly she had hit.

Giles and Wesley had paled considerably and Mina left her seat to fetch the brandy decanter. Pouring two generous glasses of the medicinal liquid Giles thanked her before explaining the circumstances to his Slayer. The girl that the Council were about to betray in the worst way possible.

"I fear that you were correct when you used the word control Buffy. In Sunnydale we endeavour to keep the peace on the hell mouth. To prevent any one demon or cult from taking control or fully opening the gate there. But what if The Council were to get to a new site first. To put themselves in a position where they could do deals with demons for their own benefit. In a location such as London they could name their price."

"I am sure that at this point in time they have only good intentions but they do not have experience of living that close to that much evil power. It gives the meaning to the saying that 'absolute power corrupts absolutely' added Wesley solemnly.

Giles didn't want to acknowledge his former employers faults before his vampire company but they had gone out of their way to be helpful and it was only right that everyone should know of the ultimate danger in the scenario.

"And Quentin Travers is still head of the council. He is bad enough as it is. If he is corrupted…"

"Maybe he already is" added an unusually serious Spike.

"Then God help us!" Wesley's involuntary shudder summed up how all the scoobies felt at Travers having control of all that evil.

"There is something else" Dracula added hesitantly and that hesitation was enough to put everyone on guard. "Our sources tell us that you have been watched since your arrival…we believe by the very same Council."

"Bloody 'ell! My family!"

TBC

Sorry it took so long but I hope you enjoyed.


	11. Chapter 11

_**FAMILY TIES CHAPTER 11**_

Disclaimer - not mine. I don't have a licence to keep wild vampires but Joss & co do so they got custody.

A/N I often wondered as a reader just how authors could have such incredibly long delays between chapters… now I know! So sorry for the months without an update but I fit this writing in between other commitments and RL hasn't given me much in between time of late. I've only been able to update stories that I've already made copious notes on, and unfortunately this one wasn't one of them. This chapter is a little shorter than previous ones for two reasons, 1 - Time constraints - I think if I make the chapters a little shorter I might be able to update quicker and 2. This is a single scene chapter between Buffy and Spike, it just seemed right for it to be that way. Anyway I hope you enjoy.

A/N 2 Not sure about transatlantic translations so just to say that a wussie is a wimp, footy is football (soccer) - sorry USA went out of the world cup, but at least they put on a better show than England v Germany! Oh the shame, Spike would be turning in his sarcophagus. Luv is love; gaff is a mistake, usually verbal; tosh is rubbish and hob nobs are biscuits which are cookies in the American vernacular.

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Buffy watched from the kitchen window as Spike paced in the rose garden. She could see his lips moving as he agitatedly ran his hand through his hair, the worry over his family's safety obviously the subject of his rambling to himself; the bright moonlight accentuating his pale hair and his predator like grace.

'Strange how for an undead creature of the night he's so bright, so alive' she thought. She felt a sudden sharp stab of jealousy and a part of her relished that pain. It had seemed like forever since she had felt any emotion at all and then suddenly Spike crashes back into her life and the emotions are tripping over themselves to be felt. And jealousy was an old familiar friend. She had always been jealous of her friends. Not in any bad kind of way, she loved them all dearly… but sometimes, just occasionally she envied that Willow and Xander got to choose to fight the evil, that Tara and Willow had found forever love when she hadn't managed to find make it to your first anniversary love. Even Spike had known true love and for over a hundred years - of course that hadn't ended so well so they had something in common there, if one discounted love spells, kidnapping and drunken rambling. The memory of her night as prehistoric Parker bashing beer Buffy assaulted her and she winced - well maybe not the drunken rambling.

As she watched Spike pace she wondered for perhaps the fiftieth time that night how she could have believed that Vampires couldn't love; it was obvious in his distress over the danger to his family and even though, after being filled in on the evenings events, they had reassured him that they would be okay and that none of it was his fault it had taken some tough talk from both Giles and Dracula to get him to calm down. And wasn't that tag team a sight to behold! Giles had pointed out that it was very unlikely that the Tennysons would be connected to the vampire who was only known as William the Bloody or Spike, that it was more likely that the Council would presume them to be friends of either himself or Wesley and even if they did figure it out the family were too high profile in society, both in their own professions and their links to the poet, to risk a wet works team operation. Dracula, on the other hand, had delegated several of his best minions to keep a constant night watch on the family while a friendly demon clan he had dealings with were to take the day shift. All in all, Buffy concluded, Spike's family were better protected than the Queen of England. She smiled understandingly as he continued to pace. No matter how well protected your family was you always worried about them. It was what you did when you had loved ones to protect, this she knew well, as, it seemed, did Spike.

"Hey!"

Spike stopped in his pacing but didn't turn right away. He had noted her scent as soon as she had entered the garden. He tilted his head to the side and half turned in acknowledgement but he didn't want her to see William, the wussie's tears threatening to spill. He breathed her scent deeply, he had missed it so very much.

Buffy, with a sense of understanding that surprised even her, realised that the emotional vampire needed a moment to put on his cocky persona. She didn't know why he was bothering because he was sooo busted, but while the 'before' Buffy would have teased, or more likely ridiculed his finer feelings the 'after' Buffy - though whether that was after resurrection or after Angel's influence she wasn't sure - instead chose, with a new maturity to channel her mother; Joyce always seemed to know how to treat Spike and to bring the best out of the complex vampire.

Spike appreciated the moment that Buffy was giving him although that also meant that he was being pretty obvious in his 'delicate emotional state'. He took a deep and totally unneeded breath to try and clear his overloaded mind. Not only did he have the worry over his family, both natural and adopted, to deal with he also had the noises in his head to contend with - 'and doesn't that sound just dandy' he thought. But it was true, for now, along with his demon and his William he had the constant hum of his link with the witches. He frowned as he wondered if the gentle thrum of subtle emotion from Tara and the counterpoint beat of Red's magical signature had their own reciprocal Spike sound in their heads and if it bothered them. He would have to check, he didn't want to annoy them.

Buffy's new found patience and understanding lasted all of just under ninety seconds. It was probably a record!

"Um, trying to be all supporto Buffy here but it's not exactly the most social time of the day."

Spike quirked an eyebrow as he turned to face his slayer, who looked adorably deadly in her Scooby doo pyjamas and sneakers with a sharpened stake tucked into her waistband.

"Sorry pet…I was just taking a few minutes to get everything sorted in my head; it's a pretty busy place at the moment."

"I know, Willow told me, about your link and William and the demon. I never realised just how complicated you were."

" 'm used to it Luv…. Willow didn't mention any problems with her part of the link did she? Wouldn't like to think I was being some sort of psychic pest."

Just a few weeks ago, maybe even a few days, Buffy's automatic reply to that question would have been to toss out an insult, saying that he'd always been a pest so why would his mind link self be any different. She felt shame at how close those words had come to her lips even now that she knew better. But her mother had always said that it was never too late to change so she just gave him a reassuring smile and told him how Willow had been excited by their connection. She knew she had done the right thing when a look of relief crossed his chiselled features. She figured that since she was being not only supporto Buffy but grown-up Buffy it was time to do what she had come out into the garden at one o'clock in the morning to do.

"I'm sorry."

Spike froze, a quizzical frown forming as he took in the fact that, for probably the first time in history, well their history at any rate, the slayer had apologized to him! If only he could figure out what for!

"For what Luv?"

Buffy had half expected Spike to laugh in her face or tell her that it was about time but the look of complete shock and bewilderment on his expressive face stunned her. After the way she had treated him! The things she had said, keeping him from Dawn and insisting to her sister, who pleaded his case at every available opportunity, that he was a monster and not a man! Why could he not see just how many apologies she owed him? He had saved Tara and then Willow. He had kept Dawnie safe and cared for, practically running the house single handed whilst patrolling every night and she had rewarded him not with a thank you butby punishing him. Her apologies had been frequent since her return… apologies to the scoobies for being misery Buffy; apologies to Wesley for not being super slayer Buffy and, on practically a daily basis, apologies to Angel, for everything from not paying attention to his lectures (although he called them conversations - she still hadn't figured out how to have a conversation with someone who wouldn't let you get a word in edgeways) to not wanting to… well she would just say that since he had gotten his soul anchored he was less inclined to live like a monk.

Buffy suddenly realised that she was in danger of emulating said vampire by brooding - so not her style - and immediately buried her not so angelic vampire thoughts at the back of her mind. This was about her and Spike. She also tried to quash the warm tingly feeling that the linking of their names created but with rather less success. She just hoped that the overly cynical vamp could tell that she was being sincere.

"I said what for pet?" Spike's shock hadn't abated but he could tell from her far away expression that she was having what Dawn would call 'a Buffy bottle blonde moment'.

"Huh? Oh, right, sorry… again." Buffy's smile was bright but nervous. She moved to the bench of the rose arbour and sat down on a rather cold seat, chilled by the night air. She patted the seat beside her. Spike obeyed with all the speed and enthusiasm of a puppy convinced that it was about to be punished for peeing on the kitchen floor.

"I won't bite" she reassured him and then blushed at his look of disappointment. Spike then sent her a sly smirk as he took his place beside her.

"Never make promises you might regret later."

Buffy clapped her hand over her mouth as an inelegant snort escaped her, but at least her gaff had seemed to calm the skittish vampire.

Spike wanted to keep the banter going, anything to avoid the look of seriousness that was settling on the slayer's features but as much as he wanted to spare the communication phobic girl the trauma of discussing her thoughts and feelings his curiosity was screaming for answers so he kept quiet.

"I guess I'm sorry for pretty much everything since I came back… and before I died too. I… I treated you badly and you didn't deserve it…"

"Vampire luv… was never going to be deserving of a medal and a commendation for my services to humanity. Being beat on and punned by the slayer comes with the job title of 'The Big Bad'"

"But it shouldn't… I mean I shouldn't, have abused you I mean…and shut up while I'm emoting!"

Spike smiled at that.

"I'm not apologizing for trying to dust you when we first met" she continued with a scowl at his smile and a secret happiness that she had been the one to put it on his face. " or even a couple of years after. Like you said, you vampire, me slayer. But you changed, and so did I. But what I couldn't see was that you were changing for the better while I… I was…"

Spike, at William's urging, passed her a clean handkerchief to mop up her sudden attack of the sniffles. While hankies weren't standard vampire accoutrements they were a necessity for raising hormonal teenagers and he was now seldom found without one on his person.

"You don't have to…"

"Yes"…sniff, sniff, "yes I do… and I said hush!"

Spike refused the return of the linen square and Buffy smiled her thanks.

"When I came back I was in a bad place. I could barely tolerate any of my friends after what they had done and Dawn was blaming herself for not dying instead of me, which made me feel even guiltier; and then Angel arrived and, and it was like a chance to go back to simpler times… to when I was sure that I knew who I could and couldn't trust." Buffy noticed Spike's involuntary flinch at the mention of his Grandsire's name but she knew that it was important to talk about it, to make him understand why she had done what she did and how her feelings had changed radically so with a reassuring pat on the jeans clad knee she continued.

Spike stared at his knee in awe, as if it had suddenly become a holy relic while his demon was as smug as a footy fan at the 1966 world cup finals - and as for William… 'Oh God' Spike swore to himself, 'he's gotten his quill out, I can feel an ode coming on!' Whilst his internal housemates were getting excited Spike maintained an air of calm and waited for the words that would destroy the feelings created by her simple show of affection. They never came. Instead he was humbled by her honesty; he knew how hard it was for her to face her feelings let alone talk about them, especially to him.

"I don't know why it took you saving Tara for me to see it but it was only then that I began to realise just how controlling Angel had become." She sighed loudly and rubbed her hands over her face in frustration.

"You're not the first to be taken in by him luv, and don't forget he's had over 250 years to perfect his routine. Stupid berk doesn't even realise he's doing it most of the time. As Angelus he didn't care, in fact as the head of the family it was expected. Nowadays he justifies it by telling himself that it's for your own good."

Buffy nodded. "He says that a lot! 'It's for your own good Buffy, you need me to keep you on the right path Buffy; that's why the Powers sent me to you'… that one always got to me, after all who am I to question the Powers that Be?"

"Bollocks!" At Buffy's look of surprise Spike apologised for his outburst but he didn't stop. It was about time that the slayer realised that it was she who was important, to the Powers and to the world.

"Sorry pet, but that's a load of tosh. The Powers that like to bugger you up sent him to you to protect you from the Master and give you back-up until you were old enough and experienced enough to fend for yourself. They were relying on you to save the world after all so they wanted to send you the best help they could…And what does the pillock do? He leaves you to drown because he won't defy prophecy and then buggers off to Hell A because 'it's for your own good' though it's more likely he's scared that his libido will win out over his less than pristine soul… again. Guess that's not a problem any more but it would have been then, he never did have good self control unless there was death and destruction in the offing."

"Oh! I never thought of it like that."

"That's because you like to think the best of everyone kitten. You should have had Angel for muscle and inside knowledge and Giles as a mentor and teacher. But the great brooding pile of hair gel managed to screw it all up."

Buffy's heart soared at the endearment…kitten. Kitten was just for her. Everyone could be a pet or a luv but only SHE was kitten! Then as suddenly as her euphoria came it vanished again as Buffy realised that she could so easily have carried on treating him like dirt and he would still have forgiven her it all, while she forced him to prove himself over and over again, setting impossible standards and never giving him credit for achieving them, instead she just kept raising the bar. Her time in the Egyptian river was at an end.

"I didn't think the best of you though did I? In fact I always thought the worst."

"And rightly so."

"What! How can you say that? I treated everyone better than you. Hell, I treated the robot man who mom dated better than you!"

"Robot man? Don't think I caught that one."

Buffy waved a hand about vaguely, wishing he would stop distracting her. This baring your soul business was tough!

"It was… it was a thing. But it's not the point. Of course I should have treated you better."

Spike smiled shyly and Buffy nearly melted. The Spike smirk was devilishly attractive but the shy boy-like smile was awesome. Damn his distractions!

"We were mortal enemies Buffy. I wasn't a supposedly tame vamp like the poof or harmless like Clem. I was out to kill you. Whatever we have now… and I'm not sure what that is, but like you said 'it's a thing'" Buffy chuckled and blushed "But the start… the start was raw power and hatred on both our parts. It wasn't anything to be ashamed of" he assured her as she looked away in embarrassment. It was honest. It was what we were and you can't switch off that distrust, that urge to kill vampires like a switch, and I wouldn't want you to, it could get you killed."

"You changed… in just a couple of years. That's no time at all for a vampire."

"Yeah but I'd been on my journey for over 150 years. It looks like you were my destination… So maybe the end of this part of my journey is the beginning of the next part of yours yeah?"

It felt right, what he had said. It also absolved her of any blame for her past actions though, an opportunity which at one time she would have jumped at in relief, but now… well she wasn't going to let herself off that easily. But the journey part, it was as if her life was in two halves; before heaven and after. Looking at it in that way perhaps being alive was more of an adventure than a burden. And an adventure was always better if a person had someone to share it with, as were burdens.

Spike could see that she had finally gotten the point although Buffy could also see, in turn, that he didn't, or more correctly, couldn't, see that he waqs deserving of her friendship… and very possibly her lo…loyalty, she hastily corrected the word that had sprung to mind.

"But I still owe you an apology and you deserve it. Maybe not for what happened at the beginning but certainly after my big comeback. So I apologise Spike. Can we start afresh, be friends?"

Spike was in internal meltdown with all parts of him agreeing that this was the best day of his unlife. Well except for his meeting with the Goddess, but it was a close call. He could also see how much his acceptance meant to her. That was a first! His opinion had never mattered to anyone but his mother before.

"Apology accepted kitten. And definitely friends." He knew that she was asking him to take things slow but he could also tell from her body language and her intoxicating scent that she at least wanted to take them further, eventually. And after waiting to be loved on equal terms for 150 odd years he could wait a while longer.

"C'mon luv, let's get you back inside before you catch your death of cold. I'll whip up some hot chocolate and hob nobs."

As Spike led Buffy back to the house three heads pulled back from an upstairs window, three squees muffled with hands as Willow, Tara and Dawn danced a delighted happy dance. Finally! Buffy the Queen of de-nile was getting the picture. Now all they had to do was make sure that the vampire and the slayer survived long enough to do something about what had been begun in the rose garden.

No problem. Just The potential new hell mouth, a potentially corrupted Watchers Council and a jealous, domineering and potentially dangerous Grandsire stood in the potential lovers way. It would be a cinch!

TBC

A/N Sorry once again for the delay. Back to the plot next chapter where Buffy and Spike go to the ball and Angel makes a very stupid decision - for Buffy's own good of cou_**rse! **_


	12. Chapter 12

Family Ties chapter 12

Disclaimer: Don't own but I wonder if I'm still around in a few hundred years copyright will have expired.

A/N Just a word to say that the mention of batting & Australia is a cricket reference (like baseball only totally different...and slower...much slower. But with better uniforms!) Oh and a snob is a person who thinks he or she is better than others but really isn't - not sure if America uses that term so I thought better safe than sorry.

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Tara and Willow took Spike and Giles in hand and no way was Buffy going to miss the witches version of queer eye for the straight guy. Dawn had wanted to go with them but decided to take pity on Xander and Andrew and teach them how NOT to dress to impress - at a Star Trek convention. Anya had wished her luck and claimed a prior luncheon engagement with Mina and a couple of Dracula's brides. They took Katherine along though since without a native guide Dawn felt that she would remain forever lost in the subway system… oops!, no, the underground sys… um, no, now what did Londoners actually call it? Oh yeah, the Tube… honestly, she thought, whoever said that the Americans and the English spoke the same language must have been talking Greek! She wondered if Katherine would be up for lunch at McD's - a big mac was a big mac in any language.

"Do I 'ave to?"

"Is this really necessary? I have a perfectly good dinner jacket already."

The accents may have been at either end of the London spectrum but the whining little boy tone was absolutely identical. Buffy sniggered, earning herself twin Big Bad and Ripper glares which totally terrified her - not! She laughed again and put even more bounce in her step as she strolled happily ahead of them. She hadn't felt this carefree in what seemed like forever. Out on the town, shopping… yum… with her best girlfriends, her father by choice and a daywalking vampire hottie! …hottie! She shrugged. No need to drown that thought in de-nile. It was merely stating an obvious truth… it was all the other truths that were attached to it that made her skin tingle, her throat go dry and her stomach do flip flops. She automatically made a mental move to shut those thoughts down, lock them in a weighted down watertight box and throw it in said Egyptian river but for the first time in her adult life she didn't. Yes, the thought of her feelings for the Master Vampire were unsettling but… not so much in a ewww way; more in a comfortably exciting one. She decided to let the emotions she was feeling breathe a little instead of suffocating them in doubt and angst… see where they went. Happy with her decision she lengthened her stride.

"C'mon guys, no time to waste. There's only so many hours in the day and sooo many shoes to buy."

Giles and Spike exchanged a conspiratorial smile as Buffy led her troops along. Their protests had, rather than depress Buffy more than she had already been of late, actually made her smile. Their Buffy was indeed back. 'No' thought Giles in consideration, 'a new Buffy; still carefree yet with a hint of maturity' He noted that she seemed to struggle slightly with a thought, her emotions always so easily readable. Then the Valley girl was back and he almost doubted what he had briefly seen reflected in the attitude of her body and the pursing of her mouth. Almost, but he knew his slayer better than he knew himself. At her mention of shoes his thoughts broke away from their path and he looked down at his own brown brogues. He exchanged another look with his vampire charge, this a comradely one of joint suffering and male solidarity and watched as Spike gazed down at his own Doc Martens. It was going to be a long day!

B*T*V*S

Andrew couldn't believe it. He was part of a cool gang who were going to save the world, or at least one of it's major capital cities. He was being treated halfway decently, not truly belonging as yet but as close as he'd ever been and closer than he'd ever thought he would be. Nobody was tormenting him like his older brother Tucker did, or hitting him like Warren. And! … And he was walking down Oxford Street with a pretty girl and a cool guy who without ANY superpowers could still kick demon ass! AND he was going to go to a party - no, strike that - a Ball, a Grand Ball! Heck, the only party he'd been to before was Tucker's eighteenth and they'd used him as a coat check attendant and a gofer. He stood a little straighter and taller as Xander gave him a friendly smile… like Luke Skywalker taken under the wing of the legendary Han Solo! Except that would make Dawn princess Leia… and she was a little young for Han Xander but on the plus side if he were Luke that would make Dawn/Leia his sister! He returned the smile of friendship offered by Xander and moved in a little closer to Dawn. You were supposed to protect little sisters and he was going to do this right, even if he did usually screw things up. He received a questioning look from Xander at the protective move. He pointedly looked around them at the teeming crowds thronging the busy shopping street and then indicated the oblivious key with a tilt of the head to communicate his new attitude towards the teenage girl.

Xander nodded approvingly at Andrew's display as he realised that far from perving on Dawn Andrew was aware of how vulnerable the girl was especially since they were almost certainly being followed by Travers' men. He found himself impressed by the attitude shown by the nerdy teen. He finally gave in to the inevitable and decided that he liked the little geek… even if he did have terrible taste in crushes…Spike! Honestly where was the kid's sense of taste? But at least he couldn't stand Angel - always a plus point for a potential Scooby as far as he was concerned.

Dawn remained oblivious of the silent bonding between the two boys; she had only two things on her mind, clothes and… more clothes!

B*T*V*S

Quentin Travers sat in his office at Watcher Headquarters, his agent's report spread out in front of him. He frowned and bit his lower lip thoughtfully. It was a rather human gesture for such a seemingly cold fish. Those he had crossed had often accused him of being less human than the demons that they hunted but he would always justify his action with reasons full of logic and pragmatism. In truth, however, he was a power hungry snob from a long line of power hungry snobs. But HE was the one who had made it to the top in their secret and elite world and he wasn't planning on letting anyone take that away from him. In fact if things went according to plan he would have more power than any of his ancestors had thought possible. Right now, however, he had to decide if the new players in the game were a threat to those plans. He had been surprised to read the identities of the family that the group from Sunnydale were lodging with but rather impressed despite himself. He hadn't realised that either Giles or Wesley had such prestigious connections. That in itself presented a problem. He couldn't very well send a wet works team after a couple so well respected in London society without serious repercussions; that would be sheer stupidity, not to mention a little premature. Nothing in the report suggested that the Tennysons were aware of the supernatural world or their friends place in it and only the blond vampire was obviously more, or rather less, than human and with his daywalking capabilities it would take an expert to detect his undead status... and just how and why Spike had become such a rare specimen was another thing he would have to get to the bottom of, as was his former employees unwillingness to share such important information. The Tennysons, however, appeared to be exactly what one would assume... old friends of Giles, probably from his days working at the British Museum. It was unlikely that the younger ex-watcher was the link since his father had denied any relationship between the Wyndham-Prices' and the historic descendants of the great poet. He made a note in the margin of the report to keep a watch on the couple but not to intervene at this time... If only all his problems were solved so easily! Moving to the bulk of the document he reached for his cup of tea and made a face as he sipped the delicate brew. Cold! He sighed at the way his week had turned for the worse. First his discovery that somebody was blocking his quest for information on how to control the opening of the new hellmouth and his agents failure to discover who - or what lay behind said efforts ( and since two of his agents had failed to return from their mission he was banking on the culprit being a 'what' rather than a 'who'; then the invasion from California. One resurrected Slayer, two watchers, two witches, two vampires, one with a soul and one with a secret, one ex-vengeance demon; one half demon and three humans. It was a bizarre combination but given their exploits over the years he was not going to be fool enough to take them other than as a serious threat - except perhaps the odd little fellow they had picked up along the way - his agent had kept muttering something about Vampyres and Star Wars. It boggled the mind just what strays the Slayer was prone to adding to her rag tag group of mis-fits. No, he doubted that they would prove to be allies. If they were they would already have reported to him instead of skulking in high class suburbia. He rose to his feet and cursing the creaking in his none too young bones popped the china cup into the small microwave he kept in his office... cold tea was a hazard of the job. He wished that finding a key to this dilemma was as easy as reheating his earl grey.

A sudden knock at the door startled him out of his reverie. He frowned at the presence of his personal assistant who stood apologetically in the doorway.

"I asked not to be disturbed" he admonished as he retrieved his now piping hot beverage and carried it carefully back to his ornate desk.

"I'm very sorry sir" Mrs Armitage apologised with just a hint of nervousness in her voice. Travers noticed and thought it odd since while he could be a hard task master Mrs Armitage had been with him for over ten years and wouldn't have interrupted him unless she knew it to be absolutely necessary. Nerves were as alien to his PA as compassion was to him. He sat back down and invited her to continue with a nod of his head.

"There is a gentleman here requesting an audience. In fact he was rather... insistent."

"And?" Travers doubted whether Atilla the Hun could rattle Mrs Armitage when she was in guard dog mode. There had to be something more. There was.

"Sir, he set off the wards... but claims to come in peace and he is unarmed"

Travers raised an eyebrow in surprise but given his week so far nothing could shock him... except perhaps England out batting Australia in the test match. The wards warned of all manner of non-human creatures but he had never had one of them present itself at the front desk before! A frisson of excitement buzzed through him as he wondered if this was his breakthrough in his quest for a way to control the hellmouth.

"Did this brave and foolhardy individual give a name Mrs Armitage?"

"Yes sir, he said to tell you that he was 'Angel' and he wanted to discuss a matter of mutual importance.

Travers was glad that he wasn't drinking his rapidly re-cooling tea; he might have choked on it. And to think he was only just opining that nothing could shock him! He was, of course, too professional to let his reaction show.

"please send Mr Angel in... and have security on stand-by in case they are needed... Oh and Mrs Armitage" he added as she turned to leave.

"Yes Sir?"

"You were wrong. His kind are always armed. You just don't see his weapons unless he wants you to and by then it is often too late" To reinforce his point Travers retrieved an ornately carved wooden stake from his desk drawer and placed it beside the Royal Doulton tea cup. With a gasp Mrs Armitage left the office and returned to the 'man' waiting patiently at her desk. She realised that after working for the Watchers Council in one capacity or other for most of her adult life she had just met her first vampire!

B*T*V*S

"Wow! This place has some great shops but why are we looking at vintage when there are all these designer labels just begging to be owned?" Buffy stared into the vintage clothes shop and admired the 1920's window display. She reckoned that she would look pretty good in that flapper dress with the silver tassels; and the beaded pumps were pretty too, though she would need more heel to bring her up to even average height. How was it fair that her best friends and her sister were taller than her anyway? You would have thought that being the Slayer would have more perks.

"Hmm?" She questioned as she realised that Willow was talking. Willow, for her part, was used to Buffy going into an altered state of mind where shopping was concerned.

"I said that we" she indicated Tara who nodded her agreement, "Want you to see Spike the way we did at the mansion. You will positively drool... we did and we're gay. Heck, even Giles looked impressed and... and he's British!"

Giles scowled but then grinned a Ripperish grin at Spike's discomfort and obvious embarrassment. The scowl soon returned as Willow continued and it was Spike's turn to smirk.

"And of course, because Giles IS British, and distinguished, and, well, old...er" she hastily amended the ageist comment but she would not be daunted. "He needs to look less librarian-y and more..."

"Father of the Vampyre?" Giles questioned acerbically but with a twinkle in his eyes

"Exactly" Tara's voice was completely sincere and Spike and Giles gawped at her apparent immunity to sarcasm until she added with a wicked gleam, "If Angel is Spike's grandfather wouldn't that make you his son Giles?"

Giles shuddered theatrically at the mere thought and he and Spike hurriedly entered the shop before any more of their fantasy family tree could be created. Drusilla as his sister was more than Giles was prepared to contemplate.

Tara and Willow exchanged self-congratulatory looks. They knew they could get the two Englishmen into the store somehow. Buffy shook her head in fond admiration but most of her brain was occupied with imagining what Spike would look like all 'tarted up' as he would say. She figured if it was enough to impress the lesbian contingent then it was probably a sight worth seeing.

B*T*V*S

Angel wasn't entirely sure that he was doing the right thing. In fact he wasn't sure of much of anything anymore. His people were showing distinct signs of disloyalty. His Buffy... and she WAS HIS DAMMIT!... he took a deep and un-needed breath to calm himself. His Buffy was becoming, once again, too individually minded for his liking. She was so close to being everything he knew she could be... should be. And then like a bolt from the blue his pathetic grandchilde decides to play heroic games and she is back to her contrary self. NO! It was worse than before, because this time she was mixing with Dracula of all people. The overly good-looking, overly educated and overly undusty pain in the ass! He drew himself up to his full and impressive height as the secretary returned to escort him to his enemy's office. Any feelings of disquiet melted away at the realization that this was the only way to detach Buffy from her friends for good... and especially from one particular blond menace. The same menace who could now walk in the daylight with Buffy. Who had been rewarded instead of him. It should be Buffy and Angel carving their names on trees in lightly dappled sunny woods and lazing together on sandy beaches. Just because he hadn't been brave... no, foolhardy enough to rescue the mousy wiccan that he had only just met wasn't reason enough to be denied his prize. With new resolve he followed the small woman into the dragon's den. 'What was that saying?' he mused; 'Oh yes. The enemy of my enemy is my friend' Well it looked like he was about to make a new friend.

B*T*V*S

Willow in a make-over mood was, as far as Spike was concerned, even scarier than the thought of being related to Giles, even in fantasy... but not as scary as the warm, almost alive, feeling that had occupied his long dead heart at that same thought.

"Turning into a right wuss!" he muttered to himself, unheard by all but the Slayer with her sensitive hearing and the fact that she was standing right behind him to block any attempt at escape. She laughed silently to herself at his forlorn comment but she had to privately disagree with the vampire's self analysis. A soul-less demon who had turned his un-life upside down for those he cared about even though his very nature demanded that he see those same beings as food or foe, and with no material award being offered was one of the most beautiful and brave things she had ever seen. Almost as brave and beautiful as actually wearing the vintage nineteenth century style evening suit that Willow was triumphantly waving aloft.

'Poor baby' she thought until her gaze was captured by a smart pair of black patent leather dress shoes. 'Wonder what size he is?' Then she blushed crimson as her dirty mind led to an entirely different interpretation of that thought!

Spike shot her an amused and slightly lecherous leer as he twitched his nose delicately but obviously.

'Damn vampire sense of smell' She glared at him but her flushed face told the story.

Spike looked once again at the black silk suit with ornate silver buttons and sighed in defeat. If it was having that effect on Buffy without him even being in it then who was he to argue? His feeling of being a real un-live Ken doll lessened at the thought of Buffy's appreciation... and the sight of Giles rapidly backing away from an enthusiastic Tara who was wielding a long black cloak and a top hat.

Maybe the suit wasn't so bad.

B*T*V*S

"So Angel, how can the Council be of help? I have to say that it isn't every day that we receive a visit by those we are sworn to eradicate."

Angel took the seat offered and attempted to look more relaxed than he was feeling. It was easier said than done but he had the added comfort of knowing, through his senses, just how nervous Quentin Travers was. He had already worked out what he needed from Travers and his organisation and just what he was prepared to offer in return. Not long ago he wouldn't have entertained the thought of betraying anyone on the side of the white hats... but then they had betrayed him first by taking his Buffy away.

"Believe me Travers if it weren't for the exceptional circumstances we both find ourselves in I wouldn't be here now. But these aren't normal times and I think we both have goals that are better achieved together than apart."

"And those goals would be?" Travers was intrigued. He had expected this visit to be on behalf of the Slayer; perhaps using one of their more intimidating members to sway him from his course of action. But those weren't the words of the Slayer and unless he was very much mistaken this private mission of the vampire who had spoken in terms of 'I' and 'We' instead of 'Us' and 'You' was not sanctioned by his friends which could only indicate dissention in the ranks. Very interesting.

"Your goal, I believe, is to control the new London hellmouth... to use the forces of evil for good rather than let the demons have free reign as they do in Sunnydale."

"Indeed." Travers didn't think it worth mentioning that it would also make him the most powerful and richest man who ever lived. Instead he waited for the other shoe to drop; for the vampire to tell him what he could offer and how much it would cost. Not that he thought for a moment that the price would be monetary. Vampires that had lived as long as Angel tended to be filthy rich anyway. He just hoped that it didn't cost anything else of value, like his soul. He was saving that for a special purpose. "And your goal would be?" He asked the sixty four thousand dollar question.

"Buffy may not be your official Slayer but she IS the one who gets the job done. Having your on-line fighter of evil incommunicado isn't the ideal. You need Buffy... and she needs me." Angel relaxed slightly as he talked about his favourite subject - himself and Travers was astounded to find another even more egotistical than himself.

Travers eyes glazed over slightly as Angel gave him the many, many, many reasons why Buffy could not function without him and how neither she nor her Watcher realised this. It was fascinating but it didn't tell the Watcher what he needed to know.

"That's quite fascinating, and a tragic tale Angel. I fully sympathize with your predicament. Lord knows that Buffy's coterie have caused me enough problems in the past but what is it exactly that you expect of me... and what do you have to offer in return?"

Angels answer was everything that Travers could have wished for and the price was one he was willing, no, eager to pay.

"I can tell you who has been preventing your access to the information you need... and I can throw the Slayer's camp into turmoil which should stop them getting in your way, at least until it's too late... and as a bonus it will give you some good research material for your scientists to... dissect."

Travers shivered at the malice in that last comment but his excitement overrode his caution.

"Why? And how?"

"Because they have betrayed me after years of working for their cause. Buffy was meant to be my reward and they are denying me that" The voice was calm but Travers noted that the eyes glowed amber. "And as to the how" he continued with a cold little smile "If they are rushing round trying to retrieve their precious vampire and his hangers on then they won't have time to chase after you will they?"

"I see" intoned the head of the Watchers Council. And he did see. He may be face to face with a demon but he understood the baser human emotions when he saw them and jealousy was always a great motivator, as was revenge. He may not trust the vampire but he trusted those emotions and he wanted... no, needed the answers to his questions and for Giles et al to be kept out of the way until it was a fait accompli.

"And what do you seek in return for this hypothetic breaking up of the gang and the information?"

'In for a penny...' thought Angel as he committed himself to a course of action he never thought he would take.

"There's nothing hypothetical about it" he stated before making his offer horribly clear. "Giles and the others have arranged to attend the Grand Ball you are hosting tomorrow. They will attempt to discover the details of your plans. Instead I will help you abduct Spike, Willow and Tara."

Travers sat up ramrod straight. This was further than he had expected the vampire to go. He understood that he might well want to be rid of his grandchilde but why the wiccans? He asked that question and his excitement grew at the answer.

"Something happened back in Sunnydale. Something that left Spike able to walk in the sun and connected him to the two girls" His mouth made a moue of distaste "I can feel them in my familial connection with my pain of a childe. And, more importantly, they are keeping that connection a secret from me... or at least they think they are. BUT" he emphasised while showing a hint of fang as reminder of his capabilities, not that Travers needed reminding. He hadn't survived this long in his world without a fairly well developed sense of self preservation. "But" Angel repeated "Whatever you do to the wiccans they are to be released unharmed when all this is over. If they die then you will have made Buffy into an intractable enemy... and don't forget that she's defeated a hell God."

Travers was fascinated at what could have occurred between the blond vampire and the two young women but he had no difficulty in promising to spare them. He didn't have to actually keep it. He was a pragmatist after all.

"And the vampire?"

Angel smiled a genuine, and colder than ice, smile that actually made Quentin gulp.

"Him I want dusted. Do what you like for as long as you like but when you're finished with him..."

"I understand, and agree to your terms" Travers congratulated himself. He had been correct in assuming that money would not be Angel's price. "Now, as to who is blocking my ambitions?"

"Not who Travers, more like what."

Quentin raised an eyebrow in query.

"Dracula" supplied Angel eager to get revenge on the Tepes Master. "And he's allied himself to The Slayer." he added as a coup de grace.

Travers paled. This put a whole new light on affairs. It was really time to do something about that troublesome young lady... and Angels plans should get that ball rolling nicely; at least until the point came when he outlived his usefulness.

Travers held out his hand to shake on the deal and Angel gripped the slightly clammy appendage, too excited in his plan coming to fruition to dwell on the insincerity in the human's smile or the overly rapid heartbeat indicating a lie. Spike would soon be dust and Buffy would be back in his arms where she belonged.

TBC

A/N Hope you enjoyed. Next chapter we finish shopping and go to the Ball. But will CinderBuffy lose more than her glass slipper!


	13. Chapter 13

Family ties chapter 13

Disclaimer: Don't own any fledges let alone master vamps.

A/N Because it's christmas I got all girly (and at my age that's quite a feat!) and there's a lot of party preperations but it will all lead into a lot more action next chapter and momentum carries on building after that with probably only three chapters to go. Anyway hope you enjoy.

.

"Hey now pet, it's gonna be okay."

Spike stroked Tara's hair gently as he tried to reassure the upset Wiccan sitting on the cold tiled floor by his side.

"The Slayer's out there, turning London upside down to find us and Drac'll have his minions out and about doing what minions do in these situations I'll wager."

Tara hiccoughed as she felt the tension lessen a little. Spike's confidence was comforting and his less than impressed tone at waiting to be rescued by Dracula was amusing.

"What about Xander? He'll be searching for us too and he's gotten quite good at that secret agent 007 stuff" Willow added, knowing that mention of the 'dough boy' would spark more snarkiness from Spike, an attitude which seemed to be doing Tara good. Not that she wasn't a wee bit scared herself but she wasn't as sensitive these days as Tara was - living out your teenage years on the hellmouth did that to a girl. And there was her girlfriend's slight claustrophobia to be taken into account. She wouldn't be surprised if the basis of that originated with her less than loving famikly and their idea of discipline. For some reason Spike seemed to make them both feel a lot better so she was happy to feed him lines at her childhood best friends expense. Xan wouldn't mind... much.

"Nah luv; more like 004 and a bit that one - better than he used to be though - and if you tell him that I'll tell everyone what you two get up to when everyone thinks you have your noses stuck in those textbooks of yours.

"Ooh!"

"Eavesdropper."

The two exclamations were tinged with laughter. Being linked as they were made for a certain lack of mental privacy they were coming to discover so neither girl was surprised at Spike's knowledge and their enforced solitude in the small white room had been helping them to get a handle on the ability. Since Tara had been cured it had been a non-stop rollercoaster ride. The general awareness they had of each other had, with practice, developed into actual telepathy, albeit a little hit and miss as yet. It had proved quite useful since they knew that their jailors were listening in on everything they said. It was tiring though so they kept it for things that mattered using the spoken word for smalltalk only. Smalltalk had the added bonus of preventing Spike from dwelling on the individual responsible for their predicament.

Angel was dust! Buffy would see to that, Willow was sure... if Spike didn't get to him first. 'Poor Buffy' she thought. It was going to tear her apart when she discovered that her first love was a traitor... but maybe not as much as it would have a few months ago she added to herself thanking the Goddess that despite their connection they had managed to re-establish their mental independence - accidentaly being party to one of Spikes stray memories from his glory days... or should that be gory day with Drusilla had 'encouraged' them to prioritize that aspect! She wondered if the lovesick vamp had realised yet that his long standing love for Buffy was no longer as one sided as it used to be; actually she wondered if even Buffy realised it... she couldn't wait for that one to hit them!

"Andrew seems like a nice boy" Tara continued their out loud conversation and hoped that their listeners were getting frustrated at the lack of information they were receiving - the revelation that the female contingent thought that Giles looked 'hot in a tux' was hardly going to help them achieve world domination.

Following his 'sisters' lead Spike assumed an air of studied dismissal. "Nice is for fools luv, so I'd say he fits the bill. Never seen such a wuss; he's more geeky than a box of whelps; can't shake your hand without threatening to wet himself and would give Mills & Boon a run for their money in the overblown romantic drama stakes."

The Wiccans kept their silence on that particular comment but they had a pretty good idea who the 'geeky' over romantic and socially inept young man reminded Spike of... and his name would be William.

"Xander and Andrew seem to be getting on pretty well" Willow added for good measure, smiling at the mock shudder from the vamp and his acerbic reply.

"Yeah well! Nerd speaks unto nerd - probably in Klingon."

There being no answer to that they lapsed back into companionable silence, Willow and Spike exchanging satisfied looks over the now calmer Tara's head. Spike pondered on exactly why they had been targeted for abduction. He could understand that Angel might have jumped at the chance to get him out of the picture, his soul would have had no compunction in betraying a fellow demon, but to put two humans in danger, that was something new. He could only conclude that it had something to do with this Trinity business, and the new hellmouth - Spike silently cursed himself for not researching deeper into the whole issue as soon as it had happened but the lure of family and the events surrounding his reunion had all happened so fast that even with vamp speed he couldn't do everything at once.

And to think that less than 24 hours ago it had all been so different, so normal.

**THE PREVIOUS EVENING**

"Oh my dear, you look positively stunning!" Katherine exclaimed, clapping her hands in delight.

Dawn pirouetted in front of the full length mirror and beamed at the compliment. She would never have picked this dress out for herself but both Katherine and Andrew, of all people, had insisted. And Katherine had attended enough Balls to know what to wear. The dress was ankle length midnight blue silk with a low-cut neckline which showed off the assets that the push-up strapless bra had given her without looking in any way tacky and an even lower back which showed off her flawless California tan. It was very grown up, as was the french plait hairdo, and Spike would have a cow! For a supposed libertine he could be pretty close to his Victorian roots when he got it into his head that her virtue was at stake. The gown, however, wasn't what he would call tarty, it was sophisticated and elegant and Katherine had assured her that he would approve. She had also seemed pleased that his approval mattered to her which was nice. It made a change for others to care about her big brother though she had noticed lately that things were changing on that front. She fingered the ornate silver crucifix that had been a gift from Giles, a part of his own family's heritage which had made her treasure it even more, and checked the earrings that Buffy had loaned her for the night (to be returned intact... or else!)

Spike paced nervously at the foot of the stairs for a few moments, looking on with ill disguised amusement as Andrew and Doyle rushed madly about catering to the whims of the females in the party who had suddenly turned into opening night Divas. 'Pussy whipped' he thought as Andrew made his way upstairs with a set of curling tongs in one hand and a cup of herbal tea in the other.

Deciding that this turn of events meant that they wouldn't be ready any time soon he moved into the elegant yet cosy lounge and sprawled gracefully in the overstuffed armchair. He shook his head at the enquiring glances from Giles and Xander who sighed and returned to contemplating their shiny patent leather shoes.

Spikes sudden chuckle, and it wasn't often that one heard a chuckling vampire after all, well not unless he or she was about to rip out your throat, had heads turning back in his direction.

"What?" Xander's tone was snappish as was usual when dealing with Spike but without the hatred and loathing in his eyes that usually accompanied it; it was as though part of him knew, deep down, that he was losing the battle to eternally hate the bane of his life... but he didn't have to publicly acknowledge the fact. Giles merely looked curious.

"Just thinking that nothing really changes."

"Huh?" It wasn't the reply that Xander was expecting. He was waiting for something rude, crude or insulting and possibly all three. Random observations were not fair play... 'fair play!' he mused. He must have been hanging around the brits for too long - he'd be supporting Man U if he wasn't careful... that he already thought of them by their shortened form was enough to tell him that he was doomed... next step earl grey tea and digestive biscuits.

Spike cocked his head to the side at this less than belligerent Xander. Curious. But he answered the question without his usual side order of snark in return.

"Just that a hundred and thirty odd years ago the men would have been sitting exactly like this waiting for the women to finish tarting themselves up and the women would have had the servants running around like headless chickens obeying their every whim" he paused before adding, "It was even worse if royalty were attending, and if they were actually coming to the house then the resulting kerfuffle would have done justice to a horde of Krillichok demons at winter solstice."

Xander had no idea what Krillichock demons did at winter solstice and he didn't want to know but 'kerfuffle'? what sort of vampire says words like kerfuffle?

Giles leaned forward a little on the sofa and eyed the peroxide vampire in his Victorian style elegance which, while not quite as shocking as it had been on that night in the mansion was still pretty impressive and certainly an eye opener for the others who hadn't seen him 'done up like a christmas prezzie' to quote Spike's own words.

"You've dined with royalty Spike?" As much as Giles' specialty was demonology he was, at heart, a historian and for possibly the hundredth time since he had put aside his natural hatred toward Spike because of his undead status and Watcher Council indoctrination he mentally kicked himself for not exploiting this fascinating source of historical knowledge.

"Well yeah" Spike replied as though it were a given and Xanders eyebrows rose slightly. While he didn't have Giles academic love of history, especially British history, it was strange to see someone he'd known for quite a while in a new light... and he hadn't even gotten used to seeing the daywalking vamp in any sort of light other than moonlight yet. And also... royalty huh! The nearest he had come to meeting royalty was watching Prince in concert.

"So did Angel mix with Kings and Queens?" he asked before Giles could start quizzing Spike on Prince Albert's eating habits. He noticed that Spike's smile had an evil edge to it as was only right when speaking of the great broody one - that hatred was the one thing that he would always gladly share in common with the younger vampire.

"Only after he was dead" came the slightly smug reply. "When old Liam was alive the closest thing to royalty in his village was the one who owned the most cows. He spent the first fifty years after his turning, after he had killed his family and all of his neighbours, reading everything he thought he needed to know to mix with the gentry on an equal basis but they always saw through him. He never got it, that it's all in the breeding... bloody toffs were no more or less intelligent than him but in their own world they'd always have the edge. And Angelus hated them for it... hated me for it. And I hated the toffs for him taking that hatred out on me, because of my accent, because of my education. Bastard couldn't stand to be reminded of what he could never be."

Both Xander and Giles were unprepared for the rare insight into Spike's past and Xander was shocked as the cockney vamp had allowed his true accent to surface - talk about son of Giles! But that little tale explained to both the reason, or at least one of the reasons, for Angel's hatred of his grandchilde and the reason why Spike had adopted the rougher London accent.

Spike jumped to his feet with a muttered and gruff "gonna go see what's keeping the bints" and Giles and Xander exchanged a look of mutual astonishment. To empathize and sympathize with Spike of all people! The apocalypse must indeed be just around the corner.

B*T*V*S

Spike had to admit that the sight was worth the long wait, although he wasn't too sure about the amount of skin the nibblet had on show, in his day... he cut that thought off sharpish. He was getting far too poncy the longer he was here. Not that he regretted coming. His family had been everything he had hoped for, not that they had had an opportunity to really chat as yet but their acceptance of him was just amazing. It was one thing to correspond with a vampire, easy to pretend he was a man with a slight blood affliction. But serving type 'o' from a china mug was above and beyond the call. And no less amazing was the growing respect he seemed to be getting from the scoobies - even Xander's loathing was sounding a little half-hearted and he suspected that had a lot to do with Andrew's rather embarrassing but oddly endearing hero worship of both of them - and their joint burning hatred for Angel and his treatment of Buffy didn't hurt either.

Not for the first time lately his thoughts scrambled and fled but this time it was because all the borrowed blood needed to power his brain had taken a sudden trip southward.

Buffy! And she looked like... she was... dammit! She WAS effulgent!

Buffy felt like a princess. She felt like a woman. She felt a million miles away from the sexlessness, even genderless, life as the Slayer... she also felt as nervous as hell and certainly more nervous than she had on her ill-fated prom night. But what she felt most of all was...

Proud! And it shocked her because until this moment she hadn't realised that she had anything to be proud about. But seeing Dawn looking so grown up and beautiful made her proud to be a sister and it made her proud to have gathered people around her over the years that she had been sure would take care of her when the inevitable happened and she had died - she hadn't, after all expected to make yet another return! And despite those long years of denial she felt proudest of all of Spike who had overcome his very nature to care for the Summers women.

And there was another sort of pride that Buffy was feeling right now. A far more visceral one. The pride of a woman who had the power to make a man, especially a hundred and thirty years worth of experience man, look at her like THAT. She blushed delicately as the intense blue eyes devoured her but inside she was crowing. He looked like he wanted to rip her pretty dress off and have his wicked way with her right there on the hall stairs - and that was something to be proud of... and look forward to!

Whoah! She stopped that image right there... for now. Lifting the skirt of her dress a little to prevent herself from tripping - she may be super coordinated when slaying but Buffy the girl was essentially a klutz - the dark red silk making that sound that only the most expensive fabrics made and the ruby and pearl necklace inherited from her mother felt a welcome warm presence round her neck, as though she was there in spirit Buffy made her way down the final few stairs to have her arm taken gently by Giles who beamed his own pride at his surrogate daughter.

Spike couldn't help but think, stuck as he was in Victorian gentleman mode that the sight of those shapely ankles would have made William swoon - the blush he felt from his inner poet confirmed his theory and just to confirm his big bad image - to himself and his alter ego if no-one else, he replaced his look of wonderment with his usual cocky leer.

Buffy grinned at the self conscious vampire's attempt to macho up. Cute or cocky she had to admit that the peroxide vampire was looking good tonight. Very, very good! She totally got what Tara and Willow had been raving about since the mansion and their giggles told her that they still thought that her vampire was a hottie - thank God they were gay, she'd hate to have to let 'jealous Buffy' loose on them.

As if it were a mental cue the gigglers and the rest of the party congregated around her. Willow was dressed in black and silver taffeta with Tara in contrasting cream and gold. Andrew and Doyle had joined the tux brigade along with Xander and Giles while Anya looked resplendent in a deep shimmering bronze ball gown which only served to push home to Xander what he had thrown away with his own stupidity. Giles on the other hand felt something stir inside his heart that had been absent since Jenny's death. It scared and thrilled him... but Anya? Dear Lord!

"You look beautiful my dear" Anya beamed at Giles heartfelt and unprompted compliment but before she could take the moment further the doorbell chimed and both Buffy and Spike rolled their eyes and sighed - a sign that everybody took, quite rightly, to mean that Angel had arrived.

Buffy couldn't help but think that Angel didn't look quite as good in his tux as Giles or even Xander and certainly not as hot as Spike. If anything he looked constipated and a little nervous; although why she couldn't imagine - they had faced tougher foes than a room full of bores and limp canapes. She was on the verge of pulling him aside to find out what had his hair gel in a knot but then decided she just didn't care! He was old enough to look after himself. This may be business but it was still a party and parties existed to be partied to! And if you were to throw in a spot of violence and a hot date... not that Spike was her date! 'And who mentioned Spike'? her inner voice crowed. 'Shut up!' she bit back half heartedly but a wicked little smile lit her face anyway.

Angel saw nothing but Buffy. She looked radiant... although perhaps her dress was a little too revealing - he'd told her about that, how it wasn't good to entice other men like she did. He glanced at the other males in the room to check that no-one was considering encroaching on his territory however everyone else was busy gathering their coats and evening purses... everyone except Spike that was who was gazing at Buffy with that pathetic and sickening adoration that he had always been prone to. That part of William that Angelus had never been able to beat, rape or torture out of him.

'No matter' he thought generously. It was easy to be generous to your rival when he was destined to be dust quite soon.

TBC A sort of stepping stone chapter. Next chapter sees Angels plan put into action and the slayers response. We also learn a lot more about the Trinity and Travers' plans. Until then Merry Christmas.


End file.
